Crazy cool smoke bush “flowers” covering the dark purple leaves. This one is in front of Lillstreet… as the smoke bush in my front yard hasn’t started “flowering” quite yet!

More rain. More raindrops. At least these trumpet vine flowers are enjoying the rain… and I’m enjoying the raindrops hanging on the flowers! Looks like the ants are pretty pleased too!!!

Beautiful white “snowball” hydrangeas popping up all over the neighborhood. So much fun to see these wonderful floral spheres of tiny blossoms when they begin to bloom each year.

And so it’s now clematis season… and yet I still have no good place to grow my own. So instead I need to covet this beauty that lives across the street from me! Easy to do when it’s this STUNNING!

It’s catalpa season in Chicago! Beautiful orchid-like flowers covering the catalpa trees with the unusually large leaves.

Beautiful now, but they’re short-lived blossoms. Soon enough the flowers will be gracefully tumbling down like snow… covering the ground, making a mess & eventually decomposing into a mushy brown mess. So enjoy them now while you can!!!

Along with the beautiful sunrise this morning, there were moments where it look like it had SNOWED along the bike trail?!!! Apparently we’re in cottonwood season with fluffy “snow” falling from the trees all around us… and collecting in little “snow drifts” along the way!!!

Just a little snippet of nature’s beauty this morning. Someone down the street is growing this beautiful clematis up their fence. I don’t really have a good spot to grow a clematis in my “city garden”… so I’ll just have to admire other’s!

Another bright spot this morning… sure, I’m supposed to be setting up for Hinsdale Day Two… was this sunshiny yellow hibiscus that just caught my eye! Stunning in every natural detail.

Another beautiful flowering tree along the lakefront bike trail this morning. Beautiful colors & striking flower formations on the red horsechestnut trees!

More beautiful spring flowers along the lakefront trail today. Cluster of white blossoms on the black locust trees… striking, but sadly not much of a scent.