This Big girl Business

"Ellee, you're a big girl!  Peyton is a baby."
"Peyton big girl. Ellee a baby."

This is a frequent conversation as of late. Ellee has even gone as far as rush me to Peyton's side when she's pooping and insist Peyton needs to get to the potty. Oh Ellee.
I've  even trying to reiterate to Ellee that she is a big girl now and so entails big girl responsibilities; like using the potty, and staying in bed.
We tried the toddler bed deal about 6 months ago or so. It did not go well. At all. Matt woke with a start and a shout when his 2 year old daughter was looking him dead in the eye at 3 am and poking his arm saying "Matt. MATTTTT." I think we actually converted her bed back to a crib at 3 am that night.
Two afternoons ago matt and I were around the house when we both heard a scream. The girls were taking naps. We thought it was Peyton and decided to give her some time to figure out if she wanted to go back to sleep. And then it changed, to this blood curdling cry. I bolted to the rooms and it was Ellee screaming. I knew something was wrong. I walked in to a room with Ellee's body outside the crib and her head stuck inside the crib.  She had managed to wiggle her body under the opening between the mattress and edge of the crib. Oh Ellee. I yelled for matt and he lifted the entire crib up to get her out. This was then followed by his words, "it's time". Oh yes it is.
There is some sort of security of keeping my wild child in a crib. So really it's about control for me. Maybe this is the first step for me in a long awaited list of things I'll need to give over to God. I can't control Ellee. I need to raise her in the fear of the Lord and to make decisions that will help her control her self.
Disciplining her has been difficult for a long time. I never am sure if we're making progress or not. But the toddler bed thing has been working. And it's finally a point where I am thinking "Hey maybe she's getting it...finally." She definitely is understanding repercussions for actions.
The first night I instructed her that she needed to stay in her bed and she needed to let me know when she was "all done". If she got out of bed she would be disciplined.  And it's worked. Her bear fell out of the bed and she had a near panic attack until I came in the room picked him off the floor and handed him too her from 9 inches down.
But I'll retrieve the bear at each bedtime if it means the security of her staying in bed.