Unfortunately, your attorney is right. There isn't much that can be done while waiting for the I-130, and the wait times depend on service center, complication of your case, if George is working that day instead of Daniel, and most of all just plain luck. I would check out the timelines of folks in your similar situation and see if you can find others who are still waiting.
If you really feel as though there's an issue, you can reach out to USCIS only AFTER you are outside of normal processing time (normal for Nebraska according to USCIS is 10.5 months, so around the end of February.) In the meantime, I'd recommend familiarizing yourself with the NVC process. Your attorney is being paid to handle it, so it's up to you, but I don't think it would hurt.
Good luck! Hope you get a response soon!