Celebrating love, friendship, athleticism.... and great pens

I love planning and hosting parties. I try to make each party special, but I'm not Martha Stewart; my gatherings are simple, with more emphasis on friends than fuss. But with all the day-to-day things that need to get done, most of my great party ideas are just that: ideas. Sometimes I need an extra little nudge -- and on Friday, MomSelect and PaperMate kindly provided it by inviting me to host a PaperMate Moms party to celebrate their new television commercial. It debuted during the Vancouver 2010 opening ceremony, and featured three of their latest products: the Gel Pen, the Designer Pen, and the Biodegradable Pen. For those of you who weren't able to watch the opening ceremonies or the PaperMate commercial, here it is:



I love the way they incorporated the winter sports into the commercial!


PaperMate also provided some great goody bags for me and my guests, featuring two of their new pens, the Gel Pen and the Biodegradable Pen, other PaperMate pens, a notepad, some recipe cards, and red paper hearts galore! All my friends loved the way the Gel Pens glided smoothly over the paper (one mom declared, "This is one pen I'm not lending to my kids because I don't want to lose it!") , and agreed it was high time someone came up with an eco-friendly pen.


We put those PaperMate Gel Pens to use write right away, copying down the recipe I found for the chocolate shortbread hearts I served during the party. The hearts theme fit perfectly for this party, since it's Valentine's Day weekend, and I love these girlfriends like my sisters. Besides, there are two red hearts in the PaperMate logo! It was such a fun way to celebrate our friendship: laughing and chatting with friends, eating chocolate, and leaving with a fun goody bag. Thanks, PaperMate and MomSelect -- and Happy Valentine's Day to everyone!

Disclaimer: Thanks to PaperMate and MomSelect, I received sample products for goody bags, decorations and party ideas to aid in throwing this party. I did not receive monetary compensation for the party or post. The views and opinions expressed here are my own.