Cabin Fun!

This weekend was so much fun!  I only wish Howie could've joined us.  He had to work on Saturday night.  Boooo.

My Aunt and Uncle have had a cabin just outside of Heber, Utah for over a year now, but this was the first time I've had a chance to go up and check it out.

Here is their property:

They have 4-wheelers, a trampoline, a fire pit, 9 acres of land, and a cute cozy house.  They call it "Black Bear Cove" because my Aunt has a thing for bears.  She has it decorated with cute bears everywhere.

They even get wildlife in their front yard from time to time.

My sister, Miranda, my Dad, and I hanging out on the porch.

Me and Mercedes.

Check out their view!

Not bad at all.

The first thing we did when we got up there was take the 4-wheelers out for a spin.

Mercedes insisted on riding with me.  I didn't mind.  She's so funny.  She was so hesitant to get on it at first and she had a blast.  She kept saying "Faster Aunt Tara, faster!"

I must admit, I felt pretty hardcore going through the water.

Don't be jealous of the farmer tan.

You can only obtain it from being naturally white like me.

My Mom and sister Miranda rode together.

And, yes folks, my GRANDMA got on the back of a 4-wheeler.

She rode with my Dad.

In the end it was probably not a good idea to take her.  She bruises really easy and that ATV was throwing her all over the place.  She also got really sunburned.  Her hair was covered in dirt.  I felt so bad for her!  But, I think she enjoyed the ride and the views we got to see were amazing.

Speaking of views:

Ah, to see the world from the seat of a 4-wheeler.

I loved it.

After our afternoon ride, we went back to the cabin and cleaned up a bit.  We ate yummy hamburgers and potato salad for dinner.  Then my Uncle Kevin and I went out for another ride.  We just hadn't had enough!  He took me to an area that is probably meant for more seasoned riders.  There were some steep hills we climbed up, but it was a rush.  I really enjoyed myself.  My philosophy for 4-wheelers became to be
"Just punch the gas and hang on."
It seemed to work pretty well.
We were fortunate enough to have a full moon on Saturday night.

Beautiful!
Temperatures were perfect for making s'mores:

We had such a fun weekend.  Can't wait to do it again!

Thanks Patty and Kevin!

Summer Dress Project

This summer I thought it would be fun to make a summer dress for myself. I am by no means a seamstress. However, my Mom has always been good with a sewing machine. Lucky me! Plus, I haven't been able to find that perfect dress. It's always too short, not the right color, etc, etc. I also find this to be a perfect opportunity to get some time with my Mom. It doesn't seem like we ever get to do much together. She is always busy. Always has something going on. Plus, my parents are raising one of my nieces so it's not like they have all the free time in the world to do as they please. But, life hands us lemons and we make lemonade, right?

I'm super excited so, let me show you what our plans are.

Here is the pattern picture:

I want it to look pretty much like this, but longer. We'll just add length to it. Another adjustment we're making is to the bow. I want to make a flower broach type of thing out of the same material we're using for the dress. I have a picture in my mind. We'll just have to make it a reality.

Here is the material for the overall dress:

And this material is for the strip that goes across the boddess:

Together they look like:

They go so well together, don't you think?

This dress is for Hawaii. I can't wait to see how it turns out!

My LASIK Success!

Don't worry.

I did not perform LASIK on my eyes with an "In-Home" kit.

I just found this comic online and had to share it!

So, my LASIK procedure was a success!  I am truely amazed by this wonderful surgery.  It is incredible that something that takes only mere minutes can change my eyesight so dramatically.  I am still in awe of it and I count my blessings each and every day.  Like I said before, vision is SO important.  I am still wearing the dark glasses when I go outside and I have to wear protective lenses over my eyes when I sleep so I don't rub them.  If you rub them (pretty much at all) you could possibly re-open your flaps and that would NOT be good.  I actually had a dream last night that I rubbed my eyes and the flaps came open.  It scared the crap out of me.  Let me tell you a little more about what LASIK is because I never really knew what it all entailed until going through it.

When I first arrived for the surgery they asked if I was feeling nervous or anxious and I said "yes".  They asked if I wanted a valium to calm my nerves and I gladly accepted.  My leg was shaking like crazy.  I get a little on edge before getting my eyes cut open.  I'm weird like that.  They then took me back to the prepping area where I had to put on a hair net and feet-booties.  They put numbing drops into both my eyes and some weird goo stuff on my eyelashes so they didn't fall out into my eyes during the procedure (I still haven't been able to get that crap off).

First thing they have to do is make the corneal flap.  They took me into the surgery room and had me lay down on my back under a laser machine.  Dr. Hoopes took a soft suction ring and placed it, first, on my right eye.  The suction ring created a small amount of pressure on my eye but not to the extent that I felt a lot of discomfort.  However, it does make your vision go fuzzy or entirely black for about 15 seconds.  Mine went entirely black which I was happy about because I didn't want to see that laser sending all those pulses into my eye.  The flap is created by the laser sending microscopic cavitation bubbles underneath the surface of the cornea.  Once the bubbles settle and combine together the flap is made.  All the surgeon has to do now is open it up.  They had me sit in a huge massage chair to wait for the flaps to be made.  That was nice!  Once they were ready for me they took me back into the surgery room.  The staff explains everything that is happening to you while it's happening.  So, there were no surprises.  They laid me down underneath another laser machine and taped my eyelashes back out of the way.  Then they took these wire eyelid holders and put them on my eyes to hold them open.  More numbing drops were given (which I was happy for).  The more the better!

Then he lifted my corneal flap back on it's hinge.  He turned the laser on and I could smell a very distinct burning type of smell.  It stunk.  I tried hard to not think about that smell being produced off of one of my very own eyeballs.  Within less than 20 seconds the laser treatment was over and the flap was being replaced back over my eye.  Then he got to work on my other eye.  It all happened so fast!  It was amazing and totally worth it!  They said the best thing to do after the surgery was to go home and sleep off the valium which I did because it made me light-headed.  I got home and slept for a good 2 to 2 1/2 hours.  I kept my protective glasses on inside and outside because I have two crazy cats that like to jump on me and sometimes poke my eye with their paws so, better safe than sorry.  It was a good thing I did too because my littlest cat, Onyx, decided to try a new ninja move on me while I sat on the couch.  It seriously scared me!  He used my face as if it were a wall to try to make his way to the back of the couch.  Of all the days to try such a maneuver!  Crazy cat.  He's never done that before.  Good thing I had those glasses on is all I can say.

The only recovery I really have to do at this point is put drops in my eyes every hour.  I put artifical tears in every hour and prescription drops in every four hours.  I can't rub my eyes for two months.  I can't swim or sit in hot tubs for two months.  I can shower, but I can't let the water directly hit my eyelids.  It's too much pressure for them.

All worth it.  This surgery has changed my life.

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