Hi Elaine, when you're creating a starter from scratch an early rise on day 1 or 2 is most likely caused by a bacterium that gives of carbon dioxide, rather than representing true yeast activity. Unfortunately, the presence of this bacterium (which is fairly common) may result in a lull period where the starter bubbles a bit but doesn't rise for several days or even longer. I hope this doesn't happen to you, but if it does, don't despair! Patience almost always wins out when it comes to sourdough starters, and even if you continue feeding exactly as you're doing, eventually the sourdough organisms will figure things out and begin performing as they should. 

If you'd like to take a more proactive approach, you might consider feeding your starter with a slightly different feeding routine, which increases the acidity of the starter and may help the yeast kick in a little sooner. Here's that plan:

1. Feed only once a day.
2. Feed with whole wheat flour rather than unbleached all-purpose flour.
3. Feed with a ratio of 2:1:1 (starter:water:flour, by weight). For example, your once a day feeding would look like this: 1/2 cup (113g) starter + 1/4 cup (57g) water + 1/2 cup (57g) whole wheat flour. 

Once the starter begins rising with this feeding routine (doesn't have to double at this point), then you want to resume twice daily feedings, which will further promote yeast activity. You can also return to our normal 1:1:1 feeding routine, and gradually transition back to feeding with unbleached all-purpose flour over the course of several feedings. Once the starter is routinely doubling within 6-8 hours after a feeding and has a pleasant aroma, then you can consider your starter mature and ready for baking bread!

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