It's been a year now since we left Seattle for Baltimore. So far the east coast is ok for me, and I'm still warming up to the area. I can't say that thoughts of longing develop when I hear news or references of Seattle.

One thing that I have been watching or observing are gardens and subtle changes of nature in the neighborhood. I'm treating this garden season as learning one - there is so much to know about plants. My desire to want to go into new endeavors with the greatest amount of knowledge slows my progress. But I think the investment of learning and time pay off. It's been fun to see the small garden and seeds I've planted around the property grow. Unfortunately I had such a late start this year that I can't say our yard is where I want it to be. We did plant a Japanese maple this year and love its presence.

Backyards are interesting in the rowhome area of Baltimore. Backyards are either neglected with overgrowth, or are areas that feature lovely gardens and lawns. Oh and this area features a lot of backyard swimming pools full of children splashing about this time of year. My plans next year are to tackle our lawns head on and garden in the back yard of our row house. This little painting was done a month and half ago. I wanted to capture the blume of the yellow lilies along the fence line in our backyard.