I grew up going to my local gym's kids club often throughout the summer. My mom was an employee, so I stayed there while she worked. I made friends, ran around, and overall had a good time. Fast forward to 2017 when I was looking for a new summer job, I decided to apply to work at the same gym my mother had once done before, but in the kid's club.

I got the job and began working as soon as possible. I went into it thinking it would be a fun job I did a few days a week, but it is so much more than that.

This is a job I love. I enjoy getting up early and heading to work each day. I enjoy talking and bonding with my co-workers. I enjoy getting to know the "regulars" that come in every day and their parents. I enjoy playing with them and putting on every Disney movie known to mankind.

Although I enjoy all of those things, it isn't always easy. Some days we can get up to 100 kids in the club, all between the ages of 6 weeks and 12 years. If you've ever worked with kids, you know that's a lot. Each kid has different needs and wants, and trying to please all of them while staying sane can be rough.

We also don't expect the kids to clean up after themselves, so usually once they are done playing, they leave their mess, which is usually a bin of toys dumped on the floor. We are constantly running around picking up toys and putting them away just for them to be pulled back out again and dumped everywhere. On super busy days, we don't even bother with this; it'll still be there in 2 hours when we aren't so busy!

The biggest problem is the age difference, maintaining peace, and ensuring that no one gets hurt. We don't get many infants, but we do get a lot of toddlers, and making sure they don't get hurt by running around with the older kids can be difficult. There's also the movie room: finding a movie to fit a 2 year old and a 9 year old isn't easy. I usually go with Moana, Inside Out, The Boss Baby, or Trolls. All these movies are big hits with kids, and I like them too so it's a win for all.

Spending long hours watching kids isn't always easy, but it's always rewarding. I love seeing children make new friends and play together, or even a simple smile on their face when they come in. Sometimes it's rough, but I wouldn't trade what I do for the world, and I'm so glad I get to come back here and work every day over breaks.