Keepin' Up With the Doerksens: July 2007

A Tidbit of Baby Info

So, what's inside? I had an ultrasound at 22 weeks done on July 25th and we thought we'd go prepared. I typed up a sheet that looked a little like this:

Check One:
Boy___
Girl___

...and an envelope to hide the answer in. The ultrasound lady said she'd check one off and include a picture in the "secret" envelope as well. Unfortunately, our plan fell through. As I was on my left side facing away from the monitor, Cory could still everything and just as the lady was saying, "OK, now don't look!" he saw her type in "girl!!!!!!!". There goes our little plan of having that envelope containing that deliciously tempting information at our disposal (which I know we would've ripped open right away anyway...).

So there you have it! A little girl!! And to celebrate, here's my little impulse purchase!

July 21

Saturday morning we said good-bye to mom and dad and the kids. It's always sad to see people leave... Yesterday I finally vacuumed up the Cheerios off the floor and sand from the couch wiping away traces of a housefull of kids. Not entirely though - there was still some shampoo left in the shower, Aidan's t-shirt in our bedroom, someone else's toothpaste in the bathroom, a little Big Kahuna's cup in the freezer, toothpaste left by Celine's bed and Jonas' "make-up" kit on the coffee table. (Last two items were sent to Dallas by mail since we found those right away.) The only lasting memento of the kids' two weeks here is a broken lamp in the loft... Do Aidan and Felix know anything about that???

Next time we see the gang again will be at Christmas and we're already looking forward to that!

21 Weeks

There's a baby in there! He or she is 21 weeks and moving around quite a big. You'd think there was a dance floor in my belly...

July 18

We all spent the day in Destin. Cory took the kids to Big Kahuna's waterslides and the rest of us did our own thing. Mom, Dad and I sat on the beach for a while. Here's dad fishing "Gollum" style with no success. The blue heron that came along a few minutes later had much better success!

After we came back home and ate supper, some of us got back in the pool. Let's all marvel at Aidan's thick lashes...

Felix has been affectionally dubbed a hobbit.

And Celine can pull of Ariel pretty well!

Fireworks

Everyone had a chance to light some fireworks. Not sure if we should've given a crash course in fire safety first...especially since Jonas downed a bushwacker before he handled the explosives. For your peace of mind, all fingers, toes and limbs are accounted for and still remain attached to each kid's body.

Pool Surfing

Who needs waves anyway? Why not just have the board in the pool while you take a running jump for it and see how long you can stay up before you sink?

Muscles! Girls, how can you resist!! Such masculinity!!

Cat Update

You're not saying it, but I know you're thinking it! You're just dying to know the latest on our kittens! Well, last Saturday was bittersweet. I packed up (with the help of Aidan, Professional Cat Catcher) the last two kittens, Coconut and Calypso and their mama Cordelia and brought them to the Santa Rosa Animal Control facility in Milton. I just couldn't justify keeping Cordelia any longer and definitely wasn't willing to drop $150 to bring her to the vet and have her spayed. I have to admit, I almost cried when I thought about giving her up because she was the mildest, snuggliest cat ever. So, we're a one-cat, half-kid family now...until November when the baby is born or if I break down and adopt another kitty - whichever comes first!

July 11 - Lambert's Cafe

After Alligator Alley, we had lunch at Lambert's Cafe, Home of the Throwed Rolls, where the "bun guy" literially rifles a roll at you from across the restaurant if he sees your hand up. The portions were also enormous so I don't think anyone left hungry.

After lunch we spent a couple of hours at the outlet mall. Everyone got a little something. Celine, Aidan, Felix and Jonas all got hats, shirts or both, Mom & Dad got a coffee grinder, I got two outfits (and one shirt even came from the materinity section - first time) and Cory got "unmentionables." The ride home was pretty tame. We were all pretty wiped from spending most of the day in the sun and humidity.

July 11 - Alligator Alley

Everyone got an opportunity to hold (and kiss) a baby alligator. We applaud their bravery!

(As you can see, Celine got extra snuggley with this reptile.)

And now for something completely different...

Way back in mid June I was nominated by Rebuild for the "Silver Spoon Awards". I got a document signed by a Florida congressman and a plaque with my name (spelled correctly, though every time it was said aloud it came out "Dork-e-sen" and "Doe-er-ken-sen") on it with a shiny silver spoon. The Silver Spoon awards recognize volunteer-ism in the Pensacola area. Here's yours truly posing with my "community" award. The picture was just sent to me by email so I thought I'd put it up.

July 8 - Kubota Hayride

Our hayride... First stop - the pond...and to our surprise, we actually saw an alligator swimming around near the dock. (Click this picture to see it larger if you like.) This is the first time we've ever seen an alligator "in the wild" at our place after over two years of living here. Pretty exciting stuff.

Dudes being cool.

Jonas + driving = terrified uncle

Each of the kids had a chance at the wheel. Celine was the final driver who delivered us safely to the house again.

July 8 - Pool Again

Shrimp! Jonas has this ravenous look about him, doesn't he?

Aidan's collection of sand dollars and shells from Navarre Beach the day before.

The diving lesson...

Do you think it worked?

July 7 - Navarre Beach & the Pool

Today we spent a good two hours or so at the beach. The water was clear and warm. The waves weren't as big as we liked, but at least there wasn't seaweed this time. Though there were these biting things... Jellyfish? We had a few stings, but survived. We tried to keep the sunburns to the minimum but failed and Celine now boasts the coolest tan lines. We came home and jumped into the pool again while a really late lunch (3 o'clock) was prepared (sausage dogs and fries). "Supper" was ice cream and desserts. So far we've fed everyone nothing but junk, so tomorrow I think we'll do fresh seafood to bring the kids' sugar levels down.

At the moment we're all watching Monsters Inc on TV and getting very sleepy after all the sun and water. Celine and I (Tash) have been addicted to a puzzle since last night. Must go...have puzzle to do!

Best goggles ever.

July 7 - Pancakes

Nothing like a pancake breakfast to start off a day of swimming...at the pool, at the beach, at the pool...

18 Weeks

During my 18th week I had an ultrasound and there's definitely a baby in there. Below is a foot, a scary skull and two profiles. If you click on the picture, it'll show a bigger one. (That's for you John.)