In book review honor girl mop mop post read review

Honour Girl// book review by mop

Hey everybody:) It's Mop here, today with a book review.


cover via goodreads.com
Book: Honour  Girl
Author: Maggie Thrash
Genre: Autobiography/Memoir, Graphic Novel
Age appropriate: 12+ (language)

In Maggie Thrash's debut novel, Honour Girl, Maggie's story of her first love is told. It is set at a summer camp, where she falls for a senior counsellor there. She has to accept the fact that she has feelings for a girl, an obnoxious shooting mate and the fact that she can't do anything about the way she feels.

Personally, I felt deeply touched by this book. It didn't leave me sad, or happy, or anything really, but it left me with something. The illustrations in the book weren't perfect but somehow they felt... fitting. I also liked the way that the book didn't only focus on the love story, but also on Maggie finding herself.

Next month we will have a discussion about it, after you guys comment here or on our Instagram (@poppyandmop.blog) please share your thoughts, questions and comments for me to read and discuss 

xx




Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

0 Comments

In apple pie food poppy poppy post Recipe

RECIPE// Grandma's Apple Pie

Hey there,
I have a super delicious recipe to share with you today.
This recipe is the one my grandma always uses to make apple pie and it is my sisters favourite thing to eat!

Preparation time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 45 mins
Total Time:55 mins

Ingredients
1 pkt of vanilla cake mix
3/4 of a cup of coconut
125g of butter (NOT MELTED)
825g can of apples
1 carton of sour cream
1/3 of a cup of caster sugar
1 egg
cinnamon to sprinkle ( or you could use nutmeg)

Method
1. Preheat a fan-forced oven to 180 degrees (c).
2.Pour the cake mix into a large bowl and rub the room-tempreature butter into the mix.
3.Stir the coconut through
4.Press into a greased pie dish and bake for 15 minutes.
5.Drain juice from can of apple.
6.Spread the apple over baked pie base.
7. Combine sugar, sour cream and egg in a bowl, and pour over the apple.
8.Return to the oven and bake for another 25 to 30 mintues.
9.Allow the pie to cool in the dish before serving.
10.Sprinkle with cinnamon (or nutmeg)
11.Cut into small (or big) slices and enjoy!

This pie is great served on it's own, with cream or ice-cream.
You could also use a different fruit instead of apple, maybe pear or apricot?

Let me know any post suggestionsyou have in the comments below, and I would love to hear about your attempts at this recipe.





Image featured in the background of the header of this post was found on canva.com as a free image. 

Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

0 Comments

In 5 5 things at the moment blogging brownies loving photography poppy poppy post post reading snail mail

My Favourites...

Hey there everyone! Thanks to those people who have taken our survey and/or signed up for the mailing list. (Remember, one reader who takes our survey will get the chance to share something on the blog) It makes blogging so much more enjoyable knowning that someone is loving what you are creating.
Anyway, I only have a short post for today about some of the things I am loving right now.

1.Brownies
I have just put a batch of brownies in the oven and the receipe I use makes the best brownies I have ever tasted! They are gooey and chocolatey in the middle and have a little bit of a crust around the outside. Trust me, once you've made these you will never use a different recepie again! (The link will be up as soon as the internet decideds to work, try googling thermomix fudgy brownies and it is the one that starts with 'I am quite fussy with my brownies)

2.Photography
I'm sure you've noticed but recently I have been posting a lot about photography, thats because I am really enjoying it at the moment. I got a DSLR camera for my birthday a few weeks ago and I can't wait to share some photos on here! (I have to take some first :-))

3.Reading
I have always been a big reader but recently I have been going through sooooo many books. Some of my favourites are: the apple tart of hope, by Sarah Morre Fitzgerald , extraordinary means by Robyn Schneider and the year of the rat by Clare Furniss. At the moment I am reading Me, Earl and the Dying Girl

4.Sending Snail Mail
As I have mentioned in this post I love sending and receieving letters.

5.Blogging
The past few weeks have been my favourite in terms of this blog, we haven't had to do as much work with the tempalate, we have started having a regular audience (thats you!) and all this hard work is starting to pay off!

Hope you all had a great weekend.
Don't forget to follow us on instagram @poppyandmop.blog for dailyish updates.
QOTD: What are you loving at the moment?
AOTD: The things above.

Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

0 Comments

In button photo comp poppy survey update

Quick Update// NEW BUTTON

Hey there guys,
In between planning my post for tomorrow and doing normal Saturday things (like netball) I have been able to design a new button for the blog.

We would love it if you were able to put our button on your blog, and we will be more than happy to return the favour. You can grab the button here.

We would also love to hear any suggestions you have. You can use our contact form or send us an email (poppyandmop@outlook.com).

Also a big thank you to Teenage Blogger Central who featured our blog last Thursday.






PS. Only 11 more days to enter our photo competition, and only four more days to complete our survey and get the chance to win a post spot on the blog. (more details for the photo comp can be found here, and the survey can be taken here)

Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

4 Comments

In competition photography poppy's photos post weekend

Photos from a few weeks ago...

Hey there all! It's Poppy here.
You may have noticed that Mop has been posting over the past few days. Hopefully, we have now gotten into a routine and we should be sharing the posting equally. Sorry that this post is a bit late, but I had some trouble uploading the photos.

Today I am going to, as I promised last week, share some photos I took a few weekends ago. All these photos were taken on a Nikon D5100 and they have only been edited slightly.
Enjoy!!







Hope you enjoyed these photos. Let me know in the comments below if you would like to see more posts like this one, or some photography tips.
Don't forget to enter our photo competition, more details here


Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

2 Comments

In chocolate food ideas ideas for you mop mop post pancakes Recipe sauce

CHOCOLATE SAUCE RECIPE

Hiya everybody :) 
So today I ate pancakes, and I was like, 'oh my sweet lord imagine chocolate sauce' and the rest is sorta self-explanatory. We had a pitiful amount of chocolate in the house so I would use more if I had more. And yes, I do understand that this is mostly melted chocolate but really I don't see a problem with that. The recipe I used for the pancakes was just one off the back of the buttermilk bottle.



Ingredients:
-6+ squares of chocolate (I used Cadbury's milk chocolate)
-3 tablespoons of milk
-Water

Method:
1. Heat water in a small saucepan on a stovetop. (I used about 1 cup of water, with a small saucepan)
2. When the water is simmering, place a heatproof bowl on the edges of the saucepan so the bottom is not touching the water.
3. Break up all the chocolate, and place it in the bowl.
4. When the chocolate is melted, turn off the heat and add milk, stirring constantly until it has reached a silky smooth consistency.
5. Serve immediately drizzled over pancakes or a similar meal.

Don't forget to rinse anything with chocolate on it asap because it will stick!

enjoy, xx mop






Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

3 Comments

In advice get active health ideas ideas for you life live mop mop post you

G E T A C T I V E// by mop


Hey guys :) it's mop. I'm not dead, ik.

Today's post is all about getting active! I'm not going to sit here and preach at you to be active, but I am going to tell you why, and how to be active if you so desire.

Why you should be active
Being active has so many health benefits that if I wrote them all here I would probably have enough writing for blog posts for the next seven years, so I thought I'd list some of the ones that I feel directly benefit me the most.
-happier mind
Yes, sometimes doing the harder thing (a.k.a running when you could be a snail) is good for your mental heath. By waking up every morning and doing some form of physical activity you are giving yourself a better outlook on the day. Personally, I dislike (hate with a passion) waking up early, but I definitely do have a better day if I exercise first thing in the morning. Some good activities to try are shuttle runs, yoga and stretching, jogging or walking.
-better breakfast
As a person who struggles every day to even think about eating before 9:30, doing something that makes me hungry definitely makes eating a lot easier. Some great things I like to eat are crumpets (not very healthy but oops), carrots, honey and bread, but most mornings I make a breakfast smoothie using whatever fruit there is around.
-lowers risks of illness
Exercising regularly and keeping healthy drastically lowers the chances that you might get sick. This all comes down to everyones different immune systems (I exercise a lot and got really sick recently). However, being active and healthy really can make all the difference when it comes to bouncing back from a cold or other illness.


How I get active
I exercise quite a bit, and I'm going to share my favourite ways to do so with you :).
-organised sport
Playing an organised sport is probably my favourite and by far the easiest way to get active. Many schools in Australia have sports teams, and even if yours doesn't, there are always clubs. I play hockey, netball and volleyball through my school, but many girls at my school play sports through a club. Another reason why playing an organised sport is great is because it isn't self-directed and you owe it to your team/ squad to be at training and games and competitions. Most teams have one to three training sessions per week, depending on the intensity and level it plays at, with one competition/game per week. Personally, I love team sports because not only is it a great way to get healthy, you make some great friends.
-running
There really is nothing like just going out and running (it is actually one of the things I do when I should be writing blog posts). Most districts have a local oval that you can run on, or you can just run around the block. Running is a great way to see how much fitter you have become because you can time yourself, but you can also see how fast you run and how much stamina you have built up.
-at home yoga and stretching
Stretch out your muscles and relaxing is the best thing to do after a workout. It lowers the chance of getting cramps, stressed ligaments or other injuries if you have a good stretch every now and then. I like to try and touch my toes, stretch out my shoulders, stretch my joints and work on my ankles. 

So there it is. How and why to get active *jazz hands*. I did put research into this post, but I'm not health professional, so remember to seek professional advice if you have any concerns. I hope you are inspired to go and get active, and do the better thing for your health. Make sure you find some funky workout songs too.

qotd: What is you favourite workout song?

aotd: I really like exercising to Teenage Icon by The Vaccines, buy I think that's just my music taste. I don't mind anything as long as it has a good beat.

Comment your answer xx

Follow us on ig: @poppyandmop.blog





Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

0 Comments

In 5 blogging blogging questions collab

Collab Post// Bloging Questions

 Hey there everyone!

Today's post is a collab post with Vivian from http://moonsworlds.blogspot.com.au/. We have each written 5 questions for the other person to answer. I have my answers to Vivian's questions below, to have a look at her answers to my questions have a look at her blog (the post should be up soon). If you would like to do a collab post send us an email, or use our contact form.

1. What Inspires you to blog?
I am inspired to blog by the success stories of other bloggers and because it is such a worry-free (most of the time) way to express my thoughts and feelings.

2.How do you stay organised?
I am slightly over-organised person who is a fan of having everything planned out and the blog is no different. I try to plan my posts at least a week in advance (sometimes it doesn't happen). I use google calendar as an editorial calendar to keep track of where all my posts are up to. And I also use onenote to record all my post ideas and drafts of posts. I prefer this to writing it straight into blogger because I can write posts on the go without using data.

3.Do you have a specific way you like to record post ideas?
I mentioned this in the question above but I like to record my post ideas in onenote. I have a section for post ideas and every time I get an idea I write it straight into a category (one day I will share how I organise my post ideas on the blog).

4.What's it like to write a blog with two authors?
This is an interesting question. I really love having two authors because it means that I get to share all the achievements and some of the work load with someone else but it is also challenging at times. It is hard, particularly if you are a person like me who is willing to do something for someone if they aren't going to do it the way I want it done, to share the blog and trust that the other person will post (this blog is mostly my posts, with the other author only posting occasionally, which you may have noticed :-)).  It is also hard to split the workload equally (I think it may be impossible) and the different authors will always have different levels of commitment to the blog.

5.What is your favourite part of being a blogger? 
I really enjoy being able to share my thoughts and feelings through the blog without worrying about what other people will think. I am not the most confident or outgoing person and I often only share my thoughts with my closest friends and family members, it is nice to have this blog to share my life on and to have a way to express myself.

I hope you have enjoyed this post, let me know your thoughts below (I'd love to know if you want to see more of this type of post). And don't forget that our photo competition is running, we have had some amazing entries already, until the 6th of July. You can find out a bit more about it here
PS. For daily updates from me check out our instagram account.






Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

2 Comments

In 5 books poppy post recommended to read winter ideas you

Winter Reads


Hey there everyone! It's Poppy.

First of all I am really sorry that I didn't post over the weekend and that this post is so late. Because it was a long weekend we went up to the mountains and I didn't have any internet acess. I will be sharing some of the photos I took on my dad's digital camera on the weekend?
Today I wanted to make a list of some of my favourite books that I have read lately, that will be perfect for the cold winter days ahead (or taking some time out of the sun, if you live in the northen hemisphere) I have read all these books this year and most of them are realistic, young-adult, fiction. Enjoy!!!!

1. An abundance of Katherines by John Green (a really interesting book but in my opinion, not as good as paper towns or the fault in our stars)

2.Amy & Matthew by Cammie McGovern (I really enjoyed this book, it focuses on the story of Amy, an increidbly intelligent 18/19 year old with cerably palsy and Matthew, a boy who has undiagonsed OCD)

3.Dandelion Clocks by Rebecca Westcott (This was a really sweet story about young teen Liv. The book shows her journey from 13 weeks before to 6 months after her mothers death.)

4.Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson. (This was an amazing book that followed Taylor Edwards journey through her final summer with her father)

5.Amy and Rodger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson (Another amazing book following the journey that Amy and Rodger take across America. The book is set out a bit like a scrapbook and that was one of the things that I enjoyed most about it)

Hopefully this list will give you some ideas for your next favourite book. Let me know in the comments if you have a favourite book you want to share.



Image featured in the background of the header of this p546ost was found on canva.com as a free image. 

Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

2 Comments

In 4 reasons feedback photography photos poppy poppy's photos poppy's photos. post why i love

Why I love Photography


Hi all,
A few days ago shared with you some of the photos I took over the weekend if you haven't seen it yet check it out here. It seems to be a bit of a theme at the moment (this weekend I will post about a different topic ) I was thinking about what makes me love taking photos so much. Here are a few of the reasons I came up with.

1.It allows you to capture things.
One of the things I love about photography is being able to capture exactly how things were. It is kind of hard to put into words but it is almost like a different kind of memory. You can capture the expression on someone's face when you have just given them something and when you  look back on it, you remember the way you felt and all sorts of other details about that moment. Things you would have otherwise forgotten.

2.You can share your memories with other people
Photography is interesting in this way because it allows other people to kind of see how you see the world. You can share things from your point of view.

3.You can share your photos with friends and family.
This is similar to point 2 but instead of showing them the world from your point of view you could be showing them where you went on a trip or what happened somewhere when they were not there.

4.Photos last forever.
Photos last forever (or a really long time, depending on how careful you are with them). If you are careful and keep all your photos in a safe place (one that you will actually remember) you can look back on them when you are older and be reminded of things you had forgotten.

I could go on and on with reasons why I love photography but I think I will stop there for today. Let me know in the comments what you love about photography.
PS. Don't forget to enter the photography competition, you can enter here.
PPS. And don’t forget to tell us what you think of our blog in our survey, you could win the chance to have something of yours shared on the blog.






Image featured in the background of the header of this post was found on canva.com as a free image. 

Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

0 Comments

In competition photography photos poppyandmopblogphotocomp

Photography Competition

Hey there,
It's Poppy.
Recently I've been sharing a lot of photos and reasons by I love photography and I thought that it would be nice to give you a chance to show off your favourite photos. So I've organised a photography competition.

Photos can be entered anytime from now to the 6th of July at midnight (ASET). You can enter any photo you like, provided that it does not feature a recognisable person and is appropriate.
They can be entered through instagram using the hashtag #poppyandmopblogphotocomp and tagging our account @poppy_and_mop_blog or emailed to us at poppyandmop@outlook.com with the subject line as Poppy and Mop Blog Photo Comp. Entries are to be finalised using the form on the photo comp page.

The prize for the winning photos (3 will be chosen) is to have the photo and a short message shared on our blog and the photo shared on our instagram account.

If you have any questions or would like more information you can contact us in the comments below or using our email.
Have fun.







Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

2 Comments

In inspiration live mountains photography photos poppy poppy's photos poppy's photos. post rainy winter

Rainy Day Photography

 Hey there everyone,
I hope you are enjoying your weekend.
Today we went up to the mountains, and although it was rainy, I managed to get a few photos that I am really happy with. These photos were all taken with my phone and have had no editing done to them. Hope you enjoy..




This last one was taken in the car which is why it is a bit blurry

I'd love to know what you think of the photos, you can let me know in the comments below.




Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

2 Comments

In

playlist//by mop

hey hey, its mop again with a playlist consisting of my favourite songs ever (this week).

Dollhouse/ Melanie Martinez
Miss Atomic Bomb/ The Killers
Teenage Icon/ The Vaccines
London Calling/ The Clash
Tear in My Heart/ twenty øne piløts
Flavour of the Weak/ American HiFi
R U Mine/ Arctic Monkeys
All the Small Things/ blink-182
Lithium/ Nirvana








Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

0 Comments

In art copic ideas live poppy post review suggestion

Review- Copic Markers

Hey there,
Thanks to the person who suggested I do a review post. Today I am going to do a sort-of-review and list some of the things I like about Copic markers. If you have any post suggestions please let us know in the comments.

Copic markers, for those of you who don't know, are an alcohol based marker. They come is many different styles and colours. This website has some more information: https://imaginationinternationalinc.com/copic/ .

Here are some things I like about Copic markers.
1. They come in so many different colours, there are more than 100 different colours to choose from.
2.They have replaceable ink, so you only need to buy the marker once.
3.You can blend colours and create shadows using the colourless blender.
4. The different tips make it easy to create different lines, textures and make the markers useful for so many different things.
5.They have a really strong colour and make shading a large area quick and easy.

There is only really one thing that didn't really like about Copic markers and that is that they go through the page unless you have very thick paper. I have adjusted to it now and use thick paper or have something under what I am drawing on so it really doesn't matter that much.

I definitely recommend purchasing some Copic markers, especially if you enjoy art. While they are expensive they last for a long time and the quality is really good.

What do you like about Copic markers? Do you use something else insted?








The image featured in the background of the header of this post was found on canva.com as a free image. 

Read More

Share Tweet Pin It +1

1 Comments