SeniorsforLiving.com is delighted to present the second edition of the “Boomers & Seniors – News You Can Use” blog carnival. Once again, we’ve compiled posts from leading bloggers about senior housing trends, boomer health, retirement issues, and more. We guarantee you’ll come away with a few new “must-reads” to add to your RSS feed!

It is with much sadness, however, that we acknowledge the passing of and say goodbye to a friend and Carnival participant, Grace R. Young OT. We honor her memory and her contributions to those living with a disability by highlighting her post Helping Hounds, in which describes service dogs as the ultimate caregivers. We applaud her work on Disabled 2 Abled and will keep her family in our thoughts.

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Future Carnival editions will follow on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month, with the next Carnival hosted by Marijke of Seniors-Support.com on February 10th.

Senior Housing/Senior Care

Certainly, if you happened upon SeniorsforLiving.com’s blog, or you’re a regular reader, you may agree that topics like finances or burial plots are not desirable conversation-starters, but they are must-have discussions. That’s why we chose to include Eight Things to Do If You Have an Aging Parent in this installment, a valuable entry that faces this difficult topic head-on so that you can be prepared to address your parents’ care needs when the time arises. Another new blog post, In Tough Times, Caregivers May Cash In, offers insight into the personal-service or personal-care contracts that are growing in popularity and providing compensation for caregivers.

As Kaye Swain at Sandwich Ink explains, caregivers are a special group, especially when it comes to helping an elderly parent move. The handy checklist is key, and provides honest advice and valuable suggestions to ease the process.

Exploring relocation hot-spots? Find out why some unexpected locations might have just the atmosphere you desire to live large, comfortably, and happily in retirement. Jeff Rose presents Retire on the Water – St. Joseph, MI and Retire by the Water – Beaufort, SC, both posted at Consumer Boomer.

Some are quick to cast off where the elderly go, says Josanne Anthony, who insists that it’s time to put a stop to “throwing away” the elderly. The Elderly in the United States, posted at Brilliant Babblings, touts “these people deserve for us to show them kindness and care!”

Health & Wellness

For a mental workout, get your left- and right-brain going with Alvaro Fernandez’s recommendations of the Top 10 Brain Fitness and Cognitive Health Books posted at SharpBrains. You’ll discover that you can transform yourself when you exercise the mind, and getting your brain to work in another direction can guard against dementia as well.

Turns out, mental and physical workouts are quite complementary. In Don’t Forget Your Weight Loss at The Senior Walking Fitness Blog, Peter Stockwell says, “Lose weight and improve your memory. It’s official, as far as I can recall.” For further mental stimulation, Catherine Eagleson presents Remembering Your ABC’s Is Not Just for Kids posted at Crosswords For Fun, saying, “Rather than making mental exercise a chore, it is time to make it a pastime that you enjoy taking part in. Doing puzzles such as crosswords and Sudoku is the perfect way to do this. They are fun for people of all ages and guaranteed to and will definitely keep your mind fit and healthy, whether you are 9 or 99!”

But if you’re in pain, it can be tough to get up the energy to actually work out. Find out what that Mysterious Morning Neck Pain could be from Dean Moyer at The Back Pain Blog. He says, “Winter is upon us and with the cold comes a greater risk of joint injury. Here are some tips on how to deal with winter in a way that can make neck pain and the cold seem a little less daunting.”

Vitality

Retirement isn’t the end of your life –- it’s just the beginning of a fabulous new stage! So there’s no reason not to retire early if you can swing it. Super Saver presents My Life Improvements from Retiring Early posted at My Wealth Builder -– take tips from someone whose retirement discoveries have given him a new lease on life. Echoing that sentiment is James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H., who says, “When you retire, remember to continue a purpose for living.” Read more on that subject in Retirement May Be Dangerous to Your Health, posted at James Hubbard’s My Family Doctor Blog.

Another way to stay fit and vital? Consider saying “yes” more often to those babysitting requests. Marijke at Seniors Support presents Your Children Ask You to Babysit? Should You? saying, “There’s a dilemma that faces many grandparents today, particularly because many of them are more active than grandparents of generations before.”

But just because you’re feeling fine doesn’t mean you’re obligated to watch after the little ones –- make sure you have your personal guidelines in place so you stay happy. Get some Healthy Stress Management Tips from Joel Gray at Health Tips 101.

Senior Lifestyle

No one is immune to the financial crisis, but find out why bad business doesn’t have to put you in debt at The Smarter Wallet in the blog post Retirement Investments Hit By The Economic Crisis? Financial Options for Seniors. And get even more advice on safeguarding your retirement savings from Jeff Rose who presents 2009 Changes to Required Minimum Distributions (RMD) Rules for Investors over 70-1/2.

Money, money, money… get the almighty dollar on your side and start investing! Mr. ToughMoneyLove presents Is This a Good Time for Baby Boomers to Downsize? at Go To Retirement, saying, “Home values are down and so are mortgage rates. This may be a unique buying opportunity.”

And finally, Banquet Manager dishes about My Lunch With The Blue Haired Ladies at So You Want To Be a Banquet Manager…. With old age comes the right to be eccentric. Enjoy!

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