Carson City woman extremely made over

Caroline Johnson has some extreme reasons to smile -- and now she looks good doing it.

"I really like my smile now," she said. "I can get my pictures taken without hating them."

Caroline, 33, appeared on the network television show "Extreme Makeover" Thursday night, which chronicled the change she underwent as she received more than $100,000 worth of cosmetic surgery.

She appears on the program with her mirror-image twin, Catherine, who lives in San Jose. The two appeared identical until Catherine broke Caroline's nose in the fifth grade.

An untimely divorce of their parents while the twins were in high school left the family without insurance and only Catherine was able to get braces, leaving Caroline with very crooked teeth.

The most extensive part of the cosmetic surgery took place in Caroline's mouth with dental surgery, gum reconstruction and veneers.

"Everybody notices my smile and my teeth the most," she said. "It changes how you feel inside."

She was isolated from friends and family for seven weeks to receive and recover from the surgeries, which included rhinoplasty, dental reconstruction, breast augmentation, a tummy tuck and liposuction.

Upon seeing her again, her husband, Mark, was speechless.

"I was in shock," he said. "It wasn't about how she looked. It was about her and having her dreams come true."

Caroline flew to Los Angeles on July 8 and returned Aug. 26 to resume her job as a dog groomer at Petsmart in Carson City and her role as wife and mother.

She was reunited with her husband, three sons and other friends and family members in front of the television cameras.

"I was nervous," said her 10-year-old son, Zach. "Before I saw her, my heart was racing."

But when she came out, he wasn't sure who to look at.

"At first, I couldn't figure out which one was my mom," Zach said. "I had to look really close at their noses and listen to their laugh."

Longtime friend Brandy Plattsmier was also there to greet the two women.

"Before, you would say they resembled each other. Now they're identical," she said. "The results of this makeover are extreme, really extreme."