Her first sail was at one week old. She learned to walk on the grounds of the Ballard Locks.

In high school one of her teachers gave her a nickname that she actually rather liked. Stefanie Dorn became "boat girl."

Along with her parents and younger sister, Jessica, Stefanie's home until college was either the F or G dock at Shilshole Marina. When she was 8 years old they moved from a 40 foot Taiwanese ketch into roomier quarters – a 52-footer named Irene.

She and her sister still had to share a room but when they were teenagers their father built them a privacy wall.

Bruce Dorn has owned a boat since he was 26 years old, the same age as Stefanie is now. After he got married he and his wife Andrea would summer on the boat but live on land in the winters.

Except Andrea Dorn noticed she seemed to see less of her husband in the winter because he needed to check on the boat. She decided to try "just one winter" as a live-aboard; they never moved off again.

As 40-year residents at Shilshole Bay Marina the Dorns are not sure of their ranking in terms of longevity ranking, but it's likely in the top 10. The Port of Seattle marina was constructed after the end of World War II.

"Just regular," is what living on a boat seemed like to Stefanie, "but really fun." Granted she was the only one in her grade school and Blanchet High School days who was a full-time, lifelong live-aboard, but she always thought it was fun.

Stefanie loved summers when they would go for longer sails around the San Juan's, but she also loved the storms. As for winters, "It was always a long walk down the dock."

When the boat needed to be in the marina dry dock they would sometimes stay on board, but it was strange to need a ladder to go aboard and have pavement instead of Sound. That’s when it was good to stay with friends in houses.

When Stefanie was younger there were lots of other children living nearby, all the docks seemed close. They would take out their little boats together, shake the rafts, walk to Little Coney's for ice cream cones or to Golden Gardens Park.

When she was older she'd walk to downtown Ballard with her friends. She misses the burger and fries she used to order at Gordo's but now that she’s an adult there’s the happy hour at Ray’s Boathouse.

Living on the docks wasn't like a neighborhood to her; Shilshole was her neighborhood.

After high school Stefanie went to the University of Washington where her parents were generous enough to pay for her to live in a dorm even though she was going to college in town. Stefanie is now a pre-trial attorney living in a studio in Wallingford but she would definitely live on a boat again.

"For sure," she said. "If I marry someone who's into it. It's a lot of upkeep," she added.

Before they had children her parents went sailing every day; after children that became once a week. On their sails Stefanie always seemed to have dinghy duty.

Sometimes she and her sister would get to drive the boat, if the weather wasn't too harrowing. As for pulling the 52 foot sailboat into the slip on F dock, "I wouldn't even do that now."

Like many live-aboards they received their mail at Ballard Mailbox and Shipping on Market Street, they had ice cream sundaes at the old Charlie's in the Port building.

When she was in high school they got a cat, but unfortunately they didn't test her seaworthiness first.

"She throws up," Stefanie's dad said, "And I clean it up."

There was no school bus at the corner but there were 1,400 filled slips, at least 300 neighbors and many a dock party. A very normal childhood. "Just really fun," Stefanie said again, finishing off a dish of ice cream next to her dad at The Scoop on 32nd Northwest.

Of course she has a way of making everything sound fun, whether it’s boats banging in the wind or getting up to go work. Pun intended, Stefanie is buoyant.

I asked if the fact that she grew up on a boat at Shilshole comes up much in conversation.

"I bring it up," she said with a grin. The pre-trial attorney is still boat girl at heart.

Peggy Sturdivant can be reached atlargeinballard@yahoo.com.