The Best of May

Hey Friends! This has probably been my favorite May in the history of Mays. I'm sad to see it go, but of course excited the summer truly is underway! Here's a recap of the month in case you missed anything, it was certainly a good one!

I photographed engagement photos for Jan and Tahnee in downtown Frankfurt, Germany. They were looking for romantic, vintage style photos and I was really quite happy with what we got! 

I opened up in a post about my flaws.

I posted a bunch of fun freebies and downloadables here.

I photographed my first wedding in Wetzlar, Germany. It was amazing to be able to take pictures in the shadow of a huge old cathedral.  Photos here. 

We released the sign up gadget for Christmas in July. If you haven't signed up yet, go here to do so RIGHT NOW! 

And, of course, the hubs and I traveled to Malta! You can check out my posts on it here, and don't worry...more posts to come. :) 

How was your May? Everything you'd hoped it to be? 

What I Wore in the Maltese Islands

When planning ahead for this trip (we wanted to pack light so I had to be quite specific about what I packed) I knew I needed to find a balance of cute and comfortable. The weather report informed me that it was going to be comfortably warm in the mornings and evenings and very hot at mid day, so I made sure to steer clear of thick, non-breathable fabrics and stuck to lightweight cottons instead.

Day One: 

Top: Zara
Skirt: Zara
Belt: Target
Necklace: Charming Charlie's
Shoes: FourStar

This outfit was perfect for wandering the narrow streets of Valetta and Mdina. The fabric was light and breathable and offered a good range of motion. 

Day Two: 

Swimsuit: The Swim Spot

Skirt: Thrifted

Hat: Charming Charlie's

Shades: H&M

I spent all of day two on a boat. It proved too windy when we were at sea to wear the hat, but it did a great job of keeping the sun from my face when we were anchored at the blue lagoon. 

Night Two: 

I'm embarrassed to say the pants, top and jacket are all from Zara.

Shoes: FourStar

Hat: c/o Kasey

Shades: H&M

It got a bit chillier at night, so I changed into pants and wore a jacket when we went to dinner at Mellieha Bay.

Day 3:

Dress; Thrifted

Top: Zara

Belt: Target

Hat: c/o Kasey

Shoes: FourStar

Necklace: Charming Charlie's 

Day Three was spent driving all over the island of Malta, and the weather report told me it would be HOT. I opted for a super light sundress worn under a lightweight lace top (if I wanted to stay modest the other option would be wearing a sweater over top...too hot for that!) I wore my hair in a loose side braid to keep it under control. 

Day 4: 

Hat: c/o Kasey
Cover up: Target
Belt: Target

We spent our last few hours in Malta at the small, secluded beach by our  hotel.  This cover up from target is super light weight and comfortable! 

Malta's Non-Negotiable Wardrobe Neccessities: 

The Maxi Skirt/Dress
Malta literally has a beautiful church on every corner, and if you visit the island without touring several of them you'd be missing out. Almost all of these churches require your legs and shoulders to be covered. A maxi skirt offers you the required modesty and a ton of comfort to go with it!

The Denim Jacket
I wore mine at least once every day. It's lightweight and extremely versatile, meaning you can throw it over any outfit and still look fabulous.

Sunglasses
The entire time we were here there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Be sure to bring your shades to protect your eyes!

Fedora/Straw Hat 
With Malta's crystal clear water always just moments away, we were in and out of the water all day every day. Wearing a fedora hat meant my hair could be as wild and crazy as it wanted  and I didn't need to stress about it!

What are your vacation essentials? 

Cruising in Malta with Hera Cruises

We spent an entire day cruising around the islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino with Hera Cruises. We couldn't have asked for better weather or boating conditions. All in all, it was a perfect day! Here's a bit about the experience: 

I couldn't be more happy with this cruising experience. Hera cruises provided excellent service and had I known our day aboard the boat would have been this enjoyable, I would have booked the same tour three times! Even now, weeks later, Steven and I are still dreaming about the hours spent sunbathing atop that wooden deck, forgetting that any troubles existed in the world. It was an unforgettable experience that I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone in Malta!

Cruise Info: Hera Cruises

Price: 50 Euro P.p. 

Our Rating: Excellent and worth every penny!

Disclaimer: Our tickets were fully compensated by Hera Cruises. However, all opinions about the experience are 100% my own. 

Wanderlustee

Hello readers of roots, wings and other things! I'm Kim from wanderlustee and if you haven't figured it out by the title, i'm currently suffering from a severe case of wanderlust. that means that while i wish my blog was me writing about all my amazing adventures from life abroad, really it's just my boring, every-day adventures from life in NYC.

 

i'm a florida girl who moved to NYC almost five years ago to become a teacher. i teach español to high schoolers in the s o u t h b r o n x and i live in queens. before that i lived in harlem for two years (it's sounds way more cool than it is). I'm probably the only person in the history of the world who does not like living in NYC ... but I met a boy, and he sorta likes it here, so here I am (it's always about a boy isn't it?)

the good news about being a teacher (besides that whole motivating the youth and making a difference thing) is that you get lots of time off to travel! i've been to costa rica (around 7 times, including studying abroad there in college), panama, nicaragua, mexico, canada, the bahamas, peru (hiked the inca trail! what what!), spain and last summer i went on a contiki trip and visited london, amsterdam, germany, austria, italy, switzerland and paris. I've also been to 26 states in the good ol' US of A with a goal to get to all 50!

  my loves in include traveling (obvi), reading, trying to take cool pictures to post on my blog, harry potter, ketchup, television and the golden girls. naps are good too. never underestimate the power of a good nap.

  i'm currently undertaking a mission to appreciate the fact that i live in NYC. current diversions include ultimate frisbee (really) and italian classes, and as soon as summer starts (june 27, 2:50 pm can't come fast enough!) i will begin what will henceforth be known as the summer of "The Tourist"...aiming to appreciate all things NYC that I haven't taken advantage of (monuments, museums and food ... most excited about the food!) i hope you'll stop by and share some of your adventures with me! xox, kim

**Featured favorite is a weekly series dedicated to introducing readers to great new blogs! 

Sign up for Christmas in July!

I don't know about you, but I love presents. No really, I love them. If you love presents as much as I do, you should DEFINITELY sign up for Christmas in July, which is being hosted by Cecilia, Alyx and Myself! This is what you gotta do: 

1. Enter your information in the gadget below. The deadline to enter in June 20th.

2. Take the HTML code for the button and display it in your blog sidebar or in a post! Let others know about this awesome exchange. 

3. Wait for us to email you with the contact information of who you've been paired with.  

4. Send that person a gift ASAP and wait excitedly for yours! The budget for these gifts is around $10 - $20.

5. There will be a huge inter-blog linkup where we all share what we gave and recieved in late July. Stay tuned for more info on that!

6. Enjoy your present and continue being awesome. 

<center><a href="http://itsalyx.com/2012/05/christmas-in-july-signup.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1157.photobucket.com/albums/p588/alyxblogdesign/mine/cij.png" width="200" height="200" /></a></center>

I'm a tease...

Yes, the water really IS that incredible turquoise.

I LOVE THIS MAGICAL PLACE THAT WE ARE IN RIGHT NOW

But I'm exhausted (and slightly sunburned) and so the rest will need to wait until the end of our trip on Tuesday!

I know, you can call me a tease if it will make you feel better.

I will understand.

Sneak Peak of Malta!

Our first full day (Saturday) in Malta was an absolute dream.
The weather is absolutely perfect. I wouldn't want it one degree lower or higher!
Our hotel is right on a bay with crystal clear water,
and we spent the day wandering the streets of the walled medieval cities Valetta and Mdina.
Here's a sneak peak, but you're not getting everything yet.
I mean, come on. I'm on vacation!

Christmas in July!

Hey friends! I'm happy to announce the exciting gift exchange I'm hosting with Alyx and Cecilia!

Be sure to come back to my blog on Monday! There will be a form you can fill out to register. This form will be on all three of our blogs but you only need to enter your information on one of them. At the end of June you will be contacted and informed about who you're paired up with, and gifts will be exchanged in July!

The budget for the gifts is between $10 and $20 (Or equivalent - we love handmade things here!) and we will be careful to pair you up with someone who lives on the same continent in an effort to keep shipping costs nice and low.

Who doesn't love the opportunity to make new friends? And I mean, presents? We all love presents.

Come back on Monday to register and get more details!

BTW, I'm literally about to leave for the airport for:

Blogging will be on the DL the next couple of days
but don't worry, you'll be sure to get the full report.