When The Flowers Bloom

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐦, 𝐈 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞
Finally! We stood in our backyard...and as was gazing at my handsome husband I felt the ambience of a secret garden- finally!—The music playing, lights twinkling, and a beautiful sunset overhead—I felt victorious. I wasn’t just admiring the beautiful floral blooms… I was taking in what felt like a victory that seemed impossible  with the crazy weather. Nine months of winter in Wyoming.
This was a moment of reflection. A reminder of how far God has brought us.

We moved to Wyoming in March 2020, right at the start of the pandemic. In 2021, we bought our first home together—and since then, my patient husband and I have poured our hearts into creating this little sanctuary. We did it ourselves—sleeves rolled up, planting every flower, pulling every weed. No landscapers. Just grit, love, and a vision of what could be.

You can see the BEFORE picture- The summer of 2022 when the snow melted and we saw what was underneath it, we were in shock.

After many failed attempts and tough winters, we’re finally seeing our hydrangeas (My first view of hydrangeas were at my Grandma & Grandpa DiConti's house- I loved them), geraniums, peonies, tulips, daffodils and purple iris that will pop up first next year, and the beautiful prairie fire crabapple trees with fruit that does not fall to the ground-they feed the birds all year long—and the red roses (mine and Michael's flower) blooming beneath our huge office window feel like a love letter from the earth itself.

We even planted two quaking aspens with peonies under each one. The aspen leaves will turn golden in the fall, reminding us that change doesn’t always mean loss—sometimes it’s just another way beauty shows up. We also extended and raised the fence, gave it a white-stain finish for privacy, and added those lights and music to make it all the more enchanting.

There’s also a statue of St. Francis with a deer nestled at his side—a quiet reminder of our wedding vows. We were married at St. Francis Mission, and I’ve always felt a tender bond with deer. Their gentle nature, the way they move with both strength and softness, has always spoken to me. Seeing that statue in our garden brings me back to that sacred day and reminds me of the kind of love we promised each other.

Just behind me in the photo is an angel statue I’ve had for ten years. It has quietly followed me through some of the hardest seasons of my life, and now it stands in this garden—not just as decoration, but as a symbol of the prayers, tears, and God's protection that carried me here. I didn’t place it for aesthetic—it belongs here, the way faith does. It reminds me that I was never alone.

And of course—Angelo, our dog, jumped into the moment with his usual charm, photobombing the picture in the most perfect way. My husband took this photo, hoping to capture a before-and-after moment—but to me, it felt like something else entirely.

In that instant, I felt like a child who planted her very first flower and actually saw it grow. I was ecstatic. There’s something that feels so pure taking you back to your childhood—pulling you away from the craziness of the world—the cool soft grass under my toes while watching the birds come to visit and nibble on a crabapple. Hearing them sing feels like they’re saying, “You did good.” And I needed that.

What made this moment even more profound and special was the date. July 19th is the day I was first diagnosed with breast cancer back in 2006. What followed was a 4 ½ year climb through some of the hardest chapters of my life—including a stage 4 recurrence in 2010. I’ll never forget or take for granted what it took to make it here… and I’ll never stop thanking God for the grace and the beautiful friendships that carried me through.

I believe in counting your blessings for a more abundant life—and I think of our friends and family as those flowers, growing more abundantly each year. Some bloom brightly and often, others return quietly after a long season—but each one has rooted into the soil of my heart.

This Secret Garden isn’t just a place of sanctuary for us—it’s a testament that by never quitting, even when it feels impossible, that’s what it takes to make every dream come true by not giving up.