I used to live in WA and had a sister-in-law who lived on Whidbey Island we used to visit. My husband and I would go night fishing off a pier we could walk to from her house. Fun
She had a beautiful garden, too. You just figure out what will grow in your zone and the length of the season, which is pretty short, and you're good to go.
You can still grow a lot, though. Roses do well, as far as flowers - my SIL had a bunch of them on Whidbey Island. I never really cared for roses, so they weren't my thing.
I was more into veggies back then, but, I could grow cherry tomatoes, lemon cucumbers (yum!), potatoes, carrots, onions, early small sweet corn, peas, beans, broccoli, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries - lots of fruit trees do great. You'll get to grow snow (chinese pod) peas most of the year. Greens, herbs.
Oh, and I had lilac trees I loved, and peonies. So, there are lots of options. And ferns! Oh, and rhodies and azaleas!
You can pretty much forget about growing things like melons and okra. But, you won't go hungry or be without flowers. I learned how to force bulbs, so I'd have some early spring in the house.
The transition was really hard for me, moving from where I grew up in the SF Bay Area. And I can't tell you I ever fell in love with snow or long winters. But, you can still grow lots of great stuff, and you just get used to doing things outside, even if the weather isn't great. You put on lots of layers and get some good waterproof clothing and shoes, and make the best of the beautiful, albeit often wet, outdoors. Get an LL Bean catalog or go shopping at REI
