Little Mama's Big Surprise

Ksenya is our family emergency plan.  Anytime there's a crisis, or not, anytime there's a need she jumps right in and fills it.  This night I don't remember what we were doing but Tyler and I had to run somewhere to do something.  My parting shot was, "Ksenya, can you keep an eye on things until we get back, it shouldn't take long".  Of course it took longer than it was supposed to and when we walked through the door I expected to find utter chaos - screaming children, messes galore and probably a little blood.  Instead we found this:

All of the children were in their jammies with teeth brushed and faces washed.  The house was clean, the floors had been vacuumed, the dishes had been done and the dishwasher was running.  Then she had organized all of them to make little beds on the floor and she was reading stories to them.  I was so impressed with her.  What nine-year-old can do this without being asked?  

The best part?  She felt great about herself.  She knows she's amazing - she knows how much she's needed in our family and she knows that every one of her little brothers and sisters adores her completely.  I don't get a lot of pictures of this big girl but I need to take more - to capture the little woman she's becoming and all the amazing ways she blesses my life every day!