English 250 Photo Project

Photo Essay: Prairie Life Fitness Nursery

 

For my photo project I did a place that means a lot to me when I go home. I work in a nursery and I have spend more time there than at home in the years before I came to college. I run the camps during the kids breaks from school, and get to spend a lot of my summers running camps for the kids. I have grown so much since I first started working at Prairie Life Fitness Club as a Nursery Worker, and don't think I would be the same person that I am today if I had never worked there. 

These photos start with the outdoor photos of the club and the surrounding buildings. It is in a perfect location, near the bank, restaurants, and places that I go on a regular basis. I can't count the many times I have picked up lunch at Legends for the staff working. I take the kids to the pool in the summer, and that is my favorite time with them. We spend at least thirty minutes slathering them with sunscreen, and going over the rules so that they don't get hurt or lost. I have had to jump in on rare occasions to save a child who misjudged their swimming abilities. 

As the pictures continue into the nursery where I spend most of my time you can see the colors get brighter, and the kids look like they are having a wonderful time. There are pictures of the different kids who all come in with the most interesting outfits, and you can tell which kids are dressed by their parents and which children are allowed to dress themselves. Some kids quietly color, some kids want you to hold them during their entire visit, and others play basketball or run in circles. One of my favorite photos is of the two kids talking to each other while sitting on the soft play. I love the way kids communicate, especially to each other, sometimes it is like a foreign language, but the staff has picked up a lot of it over the years. 

The nursery staff is a huge part of my job, and I have gained a lot of friends form working with them. There is one picture shown where the kids are playing and you can see the two employees in the back sitting next to each other not engaging in any activity with the kids. These two workers are ones that have been hired since I have been at college, and they clearly don't try to play with the kids. In the other pictures shown you can see the happiness on the workers face holding one of his favorite kids, Cali. Ever since he went to college though she has gained a new favorite worker, and gets embarrassed around the boys who work in the nursery. This was a photo taken during spring break when we were actually able to get her to smile while he held her, instead of cry. My favorite photo is of Kennedy sitting coloring at the table all by herself, and I tried to capture all the color. All of these kids are constantly surrounded by color, and the reason I wanted to represent that was to show how much they do brighten my life. 

The few pictures that I did in black and white were done that way to accentuate the faces the kids are making. I was going to take pictures of them looking at something, or playing with a toy, and they both are so interested in what I am doing that they completely lost interest in what they were doing. It is amazing how so much wonder comes form the stimulation kids are given. It makes me get in touch with my childish side, and helps me to wonder, and made scribbly drawings, but get so excited when they get put up on the board as a masterpiece. They take such pride in the small things, and I have learned a lot about this from those kids. 

Prairie Life has introduced me to my maternal side, and has made me want kids when I didn't think I would ever want them. I have grown to enjoy being silly, and this part of my personality has come out a lot more since working there. I get along with the kids because I can relate to them, and I want to see smiles on their faces. The employee's, even though I get jealous of them, have become some of the best friends that I have. I have made best friends with employees my age, as well as children at the age of six, and I can't tell you which relationships mean more to me.