Our Angel

Last night was our Ward Christmas Party and they did the story of Christmas. Kayla was asked to be an Angel in the production. She had so much fun. They have so many children each year that want to be in the story that they have finally had to start drawing names to be fair. We were luck enough to get one child in.

Then of course after it's all done and the closing prayer has been said, then in comes Jolly Old Santa.



Nathan wouldn't sit on Santa's lap but he would at least let me get a picture of him standing next to him with Kayla.....Kyle was no where to be found...you know, he's too old for that kind of stuf now. Even though he still does believe in Santa. I'm letting that one go as long as I can for the other kids sakes.

New Christmas Dress

We were out shopping yesterday and Kayla fell in love with this dress. It's hard to find her dresses that she likes. She definetly has her own opinion with clothing. I'm used to the boys who couldn't care less. Just had them something and they'll put it on. Not Kayla.....it has to be just so. I was just relieved to have found her a Christmas Dress. She loves to twirl in it. She always wants me to take lots of pictures of her twirling.

Oh yeah...don't pay any attention to the tree in the background. It's far from finished. I had a really bad day yesterday and the kids wanted to decorate it. So they had a blast doing it and then tomorrow while they're off to school, I'll have to finish it. There's still no garland or glass ball ornaments. I really didn't feel like having to dig glass out of anyones paws (hands) yesterday.

Leopard, Horses & Goats....Oh My

Kayla, Granny and of course leopard feeding the minature horses.

Nathan & Granny feeding the bigger horses


Kayla liked the baby horse a lot

Kyle taking his turn at feeding the horses

The neighbors that live next to my mom have these animals. They have 3 minature horses, three goats and two large horses and a baby colt. They were away for Thanksgiving so we were able to feed the animals when we went to Grannys for Thanksgiving. The kids had a lot of fun feeding them.

Alphabet Feast

Today in Kayla's Kindergarten Class we had the famous Alphabet Feast. They have a food item that represent a letter of the alphabet. It is quite a feast in deed. Like a for Apple, B for Bagels, C for cheese, D for Dorito's and so on all the way to z for Zebra Cakes. There is always way more food than any class could possibly eat. They have a lot of fun though getting to try all these food items. They had made turkey hats to wear at the feast. They were all very cute.

We hope you all have a wonderful Turkey Day. WE will be at my mother's just for the day and then back home.

Our First Boy Scout

Kyle is doing so well in Scouting. He is loving every minute of it. We were afraid that that camping may be a bit scary for him, but Robert went on his 1st campout and then he's gone by himself the rest of the time. He has a blast and love being the troop leader. This is us at the Court of Honor where Kyle received his Tenderfoot, and his Second Class badge. Way to go Kyle. We're so proud of you.

Missing Tooth

I forgot to blog about Kayla's 1st Tooth that she lost. We were waiting ever so patiently for it to be ready to be pulled out, but a pizza dinner did the trick for us. Robert and I neither one like to pull teeth, so it finally became so loose that while she was eating pizza one night....POP! out it came.

A New Job

Okay, sometimes I think that I don't live a very interesting life. Maybe i'm just not that great at blogging about what's going on daily or even weekly. About a week and a half ago I was taking something to Kyle at school and happened to walk through the office at what appears to be the right time. They asked me if I would be interested in a substitute aide posititon that would be temporary for the next 6 weeks, until Christmas break. I wasn't sure. I came home and thought about it and the Principal of the school called to talk to me. He said it was a 6 hour position working one on one with a boy in the 4th grade. He is mildly handicapped and just needs assitance modifying his work. I told him I wasn't interested in working all day and he said that I could pick my hours that I was willing to work. So I will start my "new job" tomorrow working from 9:00 - 12:00 Monday thru Friday. I only work with the boy for 1 hour and the rest of the time is just doing what they need done in the office. I think it will work out great. The aide I'm substituting for is on maternity leave until after Christmas Break. I went in and "shadowed" her all last week to see what it was like. The boy is supper sweet. He is just so kind and great to work with. I think it will be a lot of fun. So my days are gearing up for a change. I will also be able to see both Kayla and Nathan in the lunchroom and at recess because I will be on lunch and recess duty. I'm looking forward to tomorrow and finally being one on one with Jake....that's his name.

Then there's my fun

This is my fun and only my fun....the kids just put up with me.








I love this looking over the glasses thing she does....She is really good at it. It always makes me smile.

Cabrillo National Monument

Kyle needed to visit a National Monument to complete one of the requirements for his Citizenship badge for Scouts. So we decided to visit Cabrillo National Monument. You can see so much. It's out on Point Loma. There is also a National Cemetary there that is so beautiful. On the hills, green grass and overlooking the ocean. It's really beautiful.


Old Point Loma Lighthouse. We were able to go inside and see what it looks like inside the lighthouse. That was very fun and interesting.




Mom, Mom.....look what I see

Two jets as they were taking off from the military base. It was very impressive to hear the engines and see the speed of them both. I was only able to get a picture of one of them however.

We love the beach

What's a trip to the beach without burying someone....Nathan is always a willing subject.


Good Friends

Kayla's Sandcastle

Kyle after riding the waves

More great friends

You have to fly a kite while at the beach

Whose Tired?

This picture says it all. After two full days of pounding the Disneyland pavement "Roller Coaster Queen" Kayla ran out of steam. This is all that was left of her as we loaded up the car and headed back to the condo. It was only a 50 minute drive back to the condo from Anaheim. That part was really nice also. Didn't take long to get back.

DISNEYLAND....Need I Say More?

Well Wednesday and Thursday were our days at Disneyland and California Adventure. Robert and I haven't been there for 14 years, so much of it has changed. Like the addition of California Adventure. It took us the most part of the 1st day to get the system figured out with the fast passes and line standing. We all had a lot of fun and the kids were in heaven. The roller coaster queen (Kayla) was in her element. She road all the coasters in Disneyland and all in California Adventure except "California Screamin'". She was too short for that one. Oh well....that will give us something to hopefully go back for in a few years (or maybe 10 or 20). We will have to see how long it takes us to get our feet back to normal. The weather was great and cool and everyone enjoyed our vacation.

How do I spell Fun....L E G O L A N D

I don't know why....I guess it's just more my speed. I'm not all for standing around in lines forever (like Disneyland). We have always managed to hit Legoland on the off peak season and hardly ever stand in a line to get on a ride. I guess maybe we're just spoiled. But in my opinion, standing in lines is for the birds!!!! Kayla loves the rollercoasters. She is roller queen. She went on this one at legoland about 5 or 6 times. She just can't get enough.

There's no place like home !

Well....the saying says it all. There's no place like home. Our San Diego Vacation was so mucn fun. We started out last Saturday and drove to Oceanside, California. We stayed there at a wonderful condo that we have rented for the past 8 or 9 years. It is perfect for our family. Our good friends the Curtis's went with us and were close by in another condo in the same complex. The boys loved having friends with them. It was a great source of entertainment for all involved. Anyway here is a picture of the condo.

Anyone see a Leopard?

I forgot to post these the other day. Robert and I were out on a "date" the other night and ran across this Halloween Costume for Kayla. We both thought it was "purr-fect" for her since she's obsessed with her little Leopard. She was thrilled with it. She's worn it several times since we brought it home. She will have lots of fun for Halloween.

We're Off !

This is the view from the balcony. I can't wait till I'm standing there tomorrow evening.

Well Fall Break has finally arrived and the Branch Family is off to our very favorite vacation location, Oceanside, California. It's absolutely wonderful and we are all so excited to be going. We will hit the ever famous....Legoland on Monday and then on Wednesday we will drive up to Anaheim....you guessed it....to go to Disneyland for two fun filled days. The kids can hardly wait. This will be their first time to go to Disneyland. We should have lots and lots of pictures to share when we get back next Saturday. However don't expect anything Saturday night...I'm sure nothing will happen until Monday when everyone is back to school....or maybe even tuesday. Take care and I will check in next week.

Not much new

Not much new here in the world of the Branch Family. The past couple of weeks have been uneventful yet busy in their own way. I've been trying out a new digital camera to see if I like it. Kayla is always such a willing subject of my photo taking. Here are some shots.

What's your color?

Well....there's my color. What do you think? Does it say who I am? Maybe I don't want to know....HA HA

Give it a try....see what your color is.....it only takes a minute.

You are most like: You are Blue
You are cool and soothing, with a hidden spontanious side. You are deeper than most people percieve, and you care a lot for those whom you surround yourself with.
Take this quiz: Which Crayola Box of 8 Color Are You?
Visit Toys For Your Blog.com for more blog quizzes

My Parents

I spent this weekend looking through family photos. Found this one of my parents. Love it. Kayla thinks Granny looks funny with that hair and glasses. I'm trying to pull a bunch of family photos together to make a slide show CD with. It's really turning out to be a lot of fun. It's nice looking back of photos of my parents.

I feel the need for SPEED !

Hey Katee......I finally found the pictures of Kyle on the battery operated 4 wheeler he got for his birthday one year. He loved that thing. I always said that Kyle was born with wheels for feet. He loved anything that moved. Our neighbors the Petersons had the race car. It was a pedal car. Kyle had to pedal it like a bike to make it go. He spent hours in that thing. He drove it like a race car. He would pedal as fast out of the garage and down the driveway as he could, then hit the brakes and skid and do a spin out. He laughed and laughed doing that. He was always really good at that kind of things. He still talks about becoming a race car driver. When school gets hard and he doesn't want to do something he always ask "Why does a race car driver need to know how to do this?" He thinks all you have to do it just drive the car.