I like your idea of looking into mirrors for a reality check, as well as rereading sentences. The reason why is because, even in my most lucid moments, mirror reflections and text can appear odd on first (and even more so on second) glance.

So can the time. I can understand why you would rather test the hand-through-object. It's a nice combination to have reality checks that involve many senses: something you see, something you feel, etc. The more senses you incorporate into your daily reality checks, the more you increase your daily awareness into something that can be transferred to your dreams. Don't forget your dream signs in these practices.