The Brannen Family (left to right) Hatch, Toxey, Jarrod, Mary Blake (with Lucky Dog), Leanne, Grey, Cole.

“Whether we’re together in the woods, in a duck blind out in the freezing cold, or fishing in the Atlantic with our kids, there are these moments when you see that look on their faces – the pride, the fun and the joyful smiles. That’s what it’s all about for Leanne and me. There is nothing better. That’s why making the time and getting us all out there together is so important!”
– JARROD BRANNEN

Leanne comes from a long legacy of hunters and fishermen. Some of her earliest memories are fishing for bream and bass with her grandparents and parents when she was only 2 years old. Her love for shooting sports grew as she hunted through the years with her dad and brother, even when some of her dad’s friends thought her hair was too blonde and needed to be covered by a camo hat in the dove field! Growing up during a time when there were no waders for children, only hip boots, Leanne often had to be carried piggy-back to the duck pond by her dad.

Set up on a blind date, Jarrod took Leanne to a dove shoot and asked if she had ever shot a shot-gun? “Once or twice,” she replied with a grin. It didn’t take long for Jarrod to decide they should exit early when she limited out before he did! They spent most of their dates in a deer stand and as their family grew, they just had to build bigger stands! Her most favorite outdoor adventures include waterfowl hunting and fly fishing and hopes to be wearing her waders for both activities until she is 100!

You might not know that Leanne is a Registered Nurse which really comes in handy when you have as many children as the Brannen’s do! One night recently, Leanne went out to her truck to get her phone and was greeted by a raccoon because one of the boys had left the door open! Never a dull moment at the Brannen house!! She loves being a mom of five and feels that the only down side to a big family is the laundry! Nothing compares to watching her children learn and excel in the outdoors and she is so excited that she will one day have 5 of her own personal guides for any type of hunting or fishing!

When Leanne is not in the woods, she can be found in the kitchen cooking, taking photgraphs of her family, and practicing her bow shots. A few memories that really stand out from this 2011 season are the Rio tom turkey she and Mary Blake took in Texas, the big double-bearded Eastern long-beard she bagged in Georgia and the beautiful sailfish she caught and released in Key Largo! Above all, Leanne hopes to inspire and encourage other families like theirs to “make time for traditions” in the great outdoors!

Cole is the oldest of the Brannen 5, and at almost 13, he is way beyond his years in the ways of the outdoors! When his friends were watching a big purple dinosaur at 2, Cole was watching hunting videos on VHS and rewinding them over and over and over! He is known around the house as the “recreation director” because he always has an awesome idea for having fun outside with his brothers and sister! Yes, sometimes it has involved a kayak tied behind an atv and a flip camera, but fun is always the main objective!

Cole is as accomplished on the baseball and football fields as he is with a gun, bow or fishing pole. He plays short-stop and pitcher in baseball, quarterback and safety in football. Cole has always had a knack for making the hard things look easy and is in constant competition with himself in everything he does. Leanne and Cole have developed a new obsession for hand tying flies for their fly fishing outings and have had lots of success with their custom creations! Whether it’s drawing back on a big buck or reeling in a big brown trout, Cole is always ready!

Toxey is one-half of a matched pair and is the eldest twin by three minutes. He is affectionately known as “Biscuit” at the Brannen house because of his love of fine southern cuisine, and most any other food for that matter! Mary Blake calls Toxey her “Bubba” and they are extremely close! There is nothing he won’t do for her, including painting toe nails if she insists!

Toxey inherited his passion for waterfowl hunting and his left-handedness from his Momma and his patience in the deer stand and quickness on the ball field from his Dad. Some might say that Toxey has the quietest personality of the Brannen Boys, but he often surprises people with his hilarious, dry-witted “one-liners!” Toxey is becoming very accomplished at calling in ducks, geese, and turkeys, but nobody, not even Mary Blake, is allowed to touch his lanyard or slate! Don’t ever worry about being hungry if you get lost in the woods with Toxey, because he has a whole convenience store in his backpack, including all the beef jerky you could ever want.

Toxey and Hatch are quite the duo when it comes to sports! Just when the other team thinks they have them figured out, they swap positions at pitcher and catcher with Toxey throwing left-handed and Hatch throwing right. They have running backs shaking in their cleats when they look up field to see they have to get past the twosome at linebackers. Toxey moves down the field like a steam locomotive, but would be the first one to help up a member of the opposite team. It’s the thrill of the hunt or day fishing that brings a smile to Toxey’s face, and big or small, everything he brings home is a trophy to him!

Hatch is the younger twin brother and never meets a stranger! Hatch has the gift of being able to talk to anyone young or old, anytime about anything! Hatch could never be in a bad mood even if he tried and is always the first one out of the bed in the morning! Hatch has a very simple way of thinking about life…. plain food, don’t waste time sleeping, have fun, and no stress! As the resident “tech guy” at the Brannen’s, he is always having to help Leanne with her phone apps and laptop!

Lately, Hatch has been taking his friends on “guided” bullfrog hunts and they have been bringing home some Boone and Crockett “bulls”….frogs, that is! He can always find an excuse to get muddy and makes the world’s best grilled cheese sandwich! Hatch is a “dead eye” with a quick trigger when he picks up a gun and doesn’t ever second guess his shots! Some of his favorite hunts this season were hunting pheasants in Tennessee, taking his buck in the snow out in West Texas, and the Eastern “limbhanger” tom he took this spring in Tennessee.

Hatch loves to hook up on big tarpon and sharks when he gets to hit the saltwater and is always excited about a chance to go scalloping! In sports, Hatch “brings the heat” as a pitcher and quarterback and stops the offense like a brick wall at linebacker with Toxey at his side. No matter how a hunt turns out, Hatch’s smile and “glass half-full” attitude always make the time spent together a whole lot of fun!

The youngest of four brothers, Grey at 8 years old is the toughest of all! He is the “wild card” of the Brannen Bunch and he always has a twinkle in his eye and a grin on his face! Jarrod likes to say that most of his gray hairs have Grey’s name on them! Grey is known to carry knives, bullets, frogs, lizards, matches, and firecrackers in his pockets on any given day, and even though airport security has no idea about his reputation, he gets “the pat down” on every single flight!

Grey has a very kind heart, considers everyone a friend, and will split a mud puddle every time just to see the splash! Because Grey has had so much instruction and teaching from his older brothers, he excels in the classroom and on the ball field. He has played so much “backyard ball” that he got bumped up this year to play in Toxey and Hatch’s league and even pitched an inning where he struck out a batter!

Grey is a fearless adrenaline junkie, so don’t bet on a dare with Grey or you will lose your money every time! If you ask any Aarons Outdoors Team member, they will unanimously agree, that Grey could have his own outdoor show all by himself! When it comes to hunting and fishing, Grey is the most patient of all the Brannen Boys! It doesn’t matter how long it takes, Grey has all day and all the snacks he needs.

Everything Grey brings home is a trophy in his book, but he still holds the record for the best turkey ever taken by a Brannen. At 7 years old, Grey with his trusty 20 gauge took a monster Eastern strutter with a 12 1/2 inch beard with nearly 2 inch spurs at 40 yards on film. Some of Grey’s favorite times in the outdoors are when he’s predator hunting, fishing for Crappie (or Crappy as Grey calls them), slinging mud on his atv or just being Jarrod’s sidekick. Life is good for Grey Brannen.

Mary Blake is one of the most flexible children you will ever meet! She went straight from the hospital to a ball tournament and has been hanging with her brothers ever since! She is tough with a hair bow and will often carry a baby doll in one arm and a toy shotgun in the other! Her brothers adore her and are extremely protective of her! She is a “girly girl” who loves to play dress-up, take ballet, paint her toe nails, and cook in the kitchen with Leanne, but is also the only little girl in her pre-school that can recognize every camoflauge pattern Mossy Oak makes!

Mary Blake has spent more time hunting and fishing than lots of grown men and she can take a nap anywhere from fishing for sharks in eight-foot swells to duck hunting in a pit blind on a levy overlooking a flooded rice field with four shotguns blasting and temperatures in the teens.

At just four years old, Mary Blake has a tremendous love for the outdoors and has such a keen understanding of wildlife conservation. It is completely her “norm” to get up to duck hunt at 4 in the morning or stay up predator hunting until 12 midnight! For Mary Blake every outdoor adventure is exciting! A cricket on the way to the deer stand, a flower along the trout stream, or deciding which color “Ring Pop” to put in Momma’s backpack – it’s the little things that matter to her!

Leanne treasures the time she and Mary Blake spend together in the outdoors and looks forward to the day Mary Blake takes her first deer, duck or turkey. Whether its watching deer with her binoculars or cheering on the Aaron’s Outdoors Camo Car in the pits at a Nascar race, Mary Blake loves to do it all! The one question people always ask is – “Can you imagine being the first boy who comes to pick Mary Blake up for a date?” You almost feel sorry for him already, but he better have “done his homework” if he decides to take her hunting or fishing!

“In my opinion, what makes Aaron’s Outdoors so unique in outdoor programming, is that our show is about an entire family that is grounded, well spoken and very passionate about spending time together in the great outdoors.”
– PAT DOYLE