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If you’re looking for a new hobby as an elderly man or woman or you’re searching for something to keep your elderly parent, friend, or family member busy. And you’re interested in diamond painting, you might ask yourself, is diamond painting good for elderly?

Diamond painting is a perfect activity for elderly people because of the many positive effects on the brain (similar to meditation). Finishing a piece of art boosts self-esteem and the focus on one task relieves negative thoughts, lowers feelings of stress and anxiety, and improves brain function such as fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, which are skills that benefit elderly people in everyday tasks to maintain independence.

Let’s dive deeper into all the benefits of diamond painting for seniors and elderly people. Plus more cool stuff about diamond painting and how to get started.

Benefits Of Diamond Painting For Elderly And Seniors

1) Reduces Stress

With diamond painting, you have to focus on one task only, and that is rare in a world where we are used to being overstimulated, over-connected, and multitasking the entire day. Diamond painting takes your mind off stressful things in real life and focuses your thoughts and mind only on putting that tiny diamond on the right spot on the canvas over and over again.

In technical terms: the Amygdala – the headquarters of fear in the brain – relaxes during diamond painting which will feel like your mind is at rest and free of stress.

During diamond painting, you need conscious thought, and this meditative way of crafting gets you in a state of flow, which is when you become deeply engaged in your activity. The mind and body are one in the present moment. And according to a study, it’s the state of flow that lowers stress levels in the body. And you can imagine that it’s hard to think about your problems when you need to focus and concentrate on creating a diamond painting.

Also, there is no pressure with diamond painting. Nobody is breathing down your neck to finish it quickly. You can do it for an hour every day/ week or spend many hours during the day diamond painting while listening to music, enjoying a cup of coffee or glass of wine. You’re in charge.

2) Increased Happiness

According to Franklin D. Roosevelt: “Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort.”

Now isn’t that what diamond painting is all about?

When diamond painting takes your mind of negative thoughts, it also takes you away from negative feelings. As your thoughts directly influence your feelings. And with negative thoughts and worries out of the way, there is space for neutral and positive thoughts and happy feelings.

Also, In the state of flow that is often experienced during diamond painting, you’ll experience enjoyment and fulfillment in what you’re doing, which is the secret to happiness. When you enjoy doing something you’ll feel more satisfied with life. And the impact of more happiness in your life is significant because it’s linked to better health and longevity, increased immunity, and healthy behaviors according to the article of verywellmind.com.

Wow, who would have thought that a simple hobby such as diamond painting could lead to living a longer, happier and healthier life?!

3) Improves Overall Mental Health

Now we can assume that diamond painting is a form of art. Here is more proof that diamond painting is great for elderly people.

This study has found out that “art therapy seems to have a beneficial effect on older individuals who are coping with a variety of challenges in their lives”.

And an Australian study found evidence between arts engagement and overall mental health: “Those who engaged in 100 or more hours/year of arts engagement (i.e. two or more hours/week) reported significantly better mental well-being than other levels of engagement.”

4) Improves Cognitive Brain Functions

Cognitive brain function is the process of receiving, selecting, storing, transforming, and recovering information that the brain gets from external stimulations. Everyone needs these brain skills to work properly, but as we get older we often don’t stimulate our brain as much as we did earlier in life. And when you don’t use it, you lose it. That is why doing mentally challenging tasks every day is important to keep these basic brain skills as strong as possible. So that we can keep doing simple and complex tasks in life. And here is how a diamond painting comes into the picture.

The brain is like a muscle that can and needs to be trained. When you’re doing something new the brain creates new paths and connections. And when you’re doing something over and over again those parts in the brain become stronger. Like any other muscle in your body. Positive thinking creates paths to more positive thinking and vice versa.

While diamond painting you activate both the right and left sides of the brain and make them cooperate together. The right side is the creative, visual, and intuitive side of the brain and the left is the thinking and analytical part of the brain. Both are needed to put the right stone in the right place to create a piece of diamond painting art. Doing this over and over again develops your brain in entirely new ways and makes it stronger. And this makes anyone more efficient in completing tasks in every other area of life. It helps elderly people stay more independent as they get older.

5) Improves Fine-Motor Skills

This study confirms what many older people experience is that (fine) motor function, gait, and balance decline with advanced age. It accelerates markedly from 75-80 years of age. And a decline in these functions has a huge effect on performing everyday tasks and maintaining independence. Practicing and training, because use it or lose applies here as well, as you age can improve these functions. Or even keep them at the same level of performing.

And diamond painting is an excellent practice to improve fine motor skills because it requires you to put dozens or hundreds of stones (or tiles as some might call them) in the right spot of the canvas with the applicator pen. You train the cerebellum part of the brain that is responsible for fine movements, balance, and the brain’s ability to determine limb position.

At first, you might be a bit shaky but over time you’ll notice that you become better. Just like a surgeon.

6) Improves Hand-Eye Coordination

As you improve fine-motor skills with diamond painting you immediately improve hand-eye coordination because fine motor skill is the coordination of small muscles and the synchronicity of hand/ fingers with your eyes. As many parts of the brain are activated during the diamond painting the cerebral cortex that is responsible for control vision is also stimulated and gets stronger over time.

7) Boosts Self-Esteem

According to a study by Girija Kaimal and Kendra Ray is that only 45 minutes of art-making improves self-confidence. As you might have experienced yourself finishing a piece of art makes you feel good about yourself. And this study confirms it. And it already has an effect after 45 minutes. Imagine what it does to your self-esteem if make art every day.

As I saw for myself with my mother, mother-in-law and many elderly people I met on the road is that they love to do diamond painting 45 minutes to an hour a day. Doing this each day will give your self-esteem a boost on a regular basis which can have major effects in the long term for any person. Imagine what a positive effect it can have on an elderly woman or man who feels lonely or depressed.

8) Creates Opportunity To Socialize

I’ve expressed in many articles that socializing is one of the most important keys to happiness in retirement. We are social beings that need daily social interaction with other humans in order to stay healthy (both mind and body).

And as we get older our social circle becomes smaller. Sometimes even up to the point that some of us might even feel lonely.

Now diamond painting is of course an activity you do by yourself. You don’t need any to help you, but sharing the same hobby with other people and doing it together makes it instantly more fun.

And because diamond painting is a popular activity amongst elderly people there is a big chance you find other like-minded people in your area that want to diamond paint together on a regular basis. There are diamond painting Facebook groups out there, you can visit your local senior center or just ask around to find other diamond painters. Maybe your new best friend is around the corner.

9) Ignites Creativity

Doing something new ignites creativity but also doing something creative ignites creativity. Doing something you love ignites creativity and relaxing your brain what diamond painting does ignites creativity.

And creativity has many benefits. It’s a self-discovery journey that unblocks old patterns or habits of thinking. It motivates, helps with problem-solving, promotes thinking, and clarifies thoughts and feelings. Now isn’t that something we all need in life?

As kids, we were always creatively busy. We only did what we love to do, because why would we do something we don’t like? And as we have gotten older a huge portion of our lives we needed to be more practical, analytical to be able to pay the bills, etc. And after retirement, we often have forgotten what we love to do. And picking up creative activities at an older age which ignites our creativity brings us back to how we were as kids and all the benefits and positive feelings that come with it. Isn’t that a beautiful thing about diamond painting?!

10) Is An Emotional Outlet

Diamond painting can be used as an emotional outlet.

Often our mind is busy with the stressful things in life. Our lives can be fast-paced that we don’t make enough room for all our feelings to be expressed properly. And we need that to live free and healthy. As diamond painting puts our stressful thoughts to rest we create space for other feelings to arise that have been blocked or stuffed away for a long time.

When you have trouble putting feelings and thoughts into words, a creative outlet such as diamond painting helps you to express your feelings and experiences. And this lowers overall stress in your life, makes you feel refreshed, and increases your happiness.

How To Get Started With Diamond Painting

To get started with diamond painting there are three things you need: the right tools, the perfect canvas, and a LED light pad.

1) Diamond Painting Tool Kit

This tool kit is the first step to start diamond painting. It includes 1 lightweight diamond paint roller, 1x 28 grids storage box, 1 tweezer, 1 transparent tool bag, 4 diamond sticky pens, 3 diamond plastic trays1 label sticker, and 10 times glue. Everything you need to get started.

2) Diamond Painting Canvas

The second thing you need is a diamond painting canvas. And that is a bit more personal because there are so many different themes out there. From portraits, landscapes, flowers, animals to a custom diamond painting from your favorite photo. You pick what interests you the most.

Now because diamond painting is all about pixels and canvasses come in different shapes and sizes. And because I want you to experience the most satisfying feeling after finishing your piece of diamond art I advise you to go for a large canvas. The bigger the canvas, the more detailed your art is and the more satisfying feeling after finishing it. You might lean towards a small canvas at the beginning just to see if diamond painting is a hobby for you, but that leaves you with an unsatisfied feeling due to the lack of detail.

Also, there are 3D stones and 5D stones. 5D stones give a more sparkling effect and that is why it’s best to pick a large canvas with 5D stones. And below are some great options to choose from.

Beach

Animals

Waterfall

Cottage

3) LED Light Pad

You need a LED Light Pad to make diamond painting easier and to be able to notice the different color rhinestones. And it’s best to get the largest LED light pad out there so can always continue diamond painting no matter the size of the canvas. And this A2 LED light pad with eye-protective flicker-free LEDs, 3-Level brightness and 12 angles stand also comes with a tool kit. So besides the canvas, everything you need to get started with diamond painting.

Can anyone live in a 55+ community? It’s a frequently asked question among seniors and retirees who are focusing on moving to a 55+ community. In this article, you’ll find all the important information regarding living in a 55+ community.

As a general rule, not anyone can live in a 55+ community. The Fair Housing Act’s exemption for housing for older adults, allow 55+ communities to set age restrictions for their residents. To qualify for this exemption minimum 80% of the units in a 55+ community must have at least one occupant of 55+ or older. 

There are different rules for people who want to live in a 55+ community. When you want to move into a 55+ community, you probably have many questions about rules, living circumstances, housing amenities, and other things. I’ll share the answers to those questions in this article. Let’s find out more. 

What Are The Rules For Living In A 55+ Community?

In general, to set age restrictions for their residents, a 55+ community must satisfy all the requirements of the Fair Housing Act’s housing for older persons exemption.’ However, specific house rules and policies can vary per 55+ communities.

As stated on the US Department of Housing and Urban Development website, “the Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination because of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, or familial status. However, it contains a limited exemption from the familial status prohibitions for housing for older persons.”

In other words, it is allowed for 55+ communities, senior communities, retirement communities, etc., to set age restrictions for their residents. To do so, they must qualify for all the requirements of this exemption. 

I quoted the following information for your convenience, which you can also find on the HUD’s website via this link. 

“The housing for older persons exemption only applies to the following housing; 

1. Provided under any state or federal program that the Secretary of HUD has determined to be specifically designed and operated to assist elderly persons (as defined in the state or federal program);
2. Intended for, and solely occupied by persons 62 years of age or older; or
3. Intended and operated for occupancy by persons 55 years of age or older.

In order to qualify for the “55 or older” housing exemption, a facility or community must satisfy each of the following requirements:

• At least 80 percent of the units must have at least one occupant who is 55 years of age or older; and
• The facility or community must publish and adhere to policies and procedures that demonstrate the intent to operate as “55 or older” housing; and
• The facility or community must comply with HUD’s regulatory requirements for age verification of residents.

The “housing for older persons” exemption does not protect such housing facilities or communities from liability for housing discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, or national origin.”

The source I used for the quotation above is this link: https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/fair_housing_act_housing_older_persons 

Now that we explained the official rules of the Fair Housing Act exemption for housing for older persons, it’s getting clear that not anyone can live in a 55+ community. However, these rules also allow exemptions for specific situations. I will discuss these in the following part. 

Can You Live In A 55+ Community When You’re Younger?

As a general rule, you can live in a 55+ community when you’re younger. One of the qualifications of the housing for older adults exemptions is that a minimum of eighty percent (80%) of the units must be occupied by at least one occupant of 55+ or older. This allows that 20% of all residents in a 55+ community can be younger than 55. 

Many 55+ communities allow a maximum of 15% of their residents to be younger. This way, they stay under the 20% rule of the Fair Housing Act’s exemption. However, each community can decide if they allow younger residents to rent or buy a commodity to live in. So, the rules can vary per community. 

If you want to apply for housing in a 55+ community when you’re younger, make sure to read the specific rules of that community before you apply for housing. When you the rules of that community, you know what to expect, which can save you a lot of time and possible disappointment if they don’t allow younger residents. 

To find the specific housing rules for a community, simply visit their website and search for the housing rules. You’ll often see a section in the website’s menu that can direct you to these rules. You might also use the search box to find these rules. If there aren’t any rules available on the website, you can try to contact the community and ask if they can send over the rules to you. 

Can My Younger Spouse Live With Me In A 55+ Community? 

According to the fair housing act’s housing for older persons exemption, your younger spouse can live with you in a 55+ community if they comply with the 80% rule of this exemption. This rule says that at least 80% of the units in a 55+ community must have at least one occupant of 55+ or older. 

Let’s say the senior community you want to live in easily reaches the 80% rule we mentioned above. If you’re 55+ or older and registered as an occupant of the unit, you’re younger spouse can live with you in this community as well. 

When you and your spouse are both younger than 55, it’s getting more difficult to be allowed to live in a 55+ or senior community. To only way to be eligible for a unit in a 55+ community is if the community still allows a percentage of their occupants to be younger than 55. However, a 55+ community often sets a maximum of less than 20% of the units available for younger occupants. This way, the community makes sure to stay within the limits of the rules sets by the Fair Housing Act’s exemption for housing for older persons. 

Can I Live With My Mom In A 55+ Community?

In general, you can live with your mom in a 55+ community when you are 18 years or older, and your mom is 55 or older. However, the 55+community must satisfy the 80% rule of the fair housing act’s housing for older persons exemption.

Many 55+ communities also allow you to live with your mom when you are excluded from this rule. Most of the time, 55+ communities allow around 15% of all their units to be occupied by residents younger than 55.

Suppose you want to live with your mom because she needs continuing care or assisted living because of a disability. In that case, you are excluded from the 80/20 occupancy requirement. It doesn’t matter if you live in the same unit or a separate unit in the same community as your mom. This question was specifically answered in the Q&A section (question #20) of the Housing for Older Persons. You can find the complete list of questions and answers using this link.

Can My Children Live With Me In A 55+ Community?

In general, your children can live with you in a 55+ community if they are they are 18 years or older. You have to be at least 55, or the community has to count you among the 20% of residents that are allowed to be younger than 55. This way the 55+ community still can qualify for the fair housing act’s exemption for older persons. 

However, most 55+ communities don’t allow under-aged children to live with you in a 55+ community. The only way to make sure if this is possible in your community is to figure out the specific policy of the community regarding underage children. 

Like we discussed at the start of this article, the rules to qualify for the 55 or older housing exemption as a community is very clear. It’s much easier to determine if a family member, your children, or your spouse can live with you in a 55+ community now that you know the basic rules that are set by the US department for housing and urban development. 

However, according to the questions & answers section regarding the fair housing act’s exemption of housing for older adults, communities can deviate from the requirements that are set to qualify for this exemption. The requirements are set as minimum requirements. This means that communities can decide to set stricter requirements for their residents. 

For example, 55+ communities can only accept 100% of the residents to be 55+ or older. Let me explain this. 

The 80/20 rule, as stated in the fair housing act’s exemption for housing for older persons, is a minimum requirement. Meaning that at least 80% of the units must have an occupant of 55+ or older. Communities are allowed to deviate and set stricter rules. For example, that residents must be 60+ or older. It’s not allowed to set less strict rules. If a community has less strict rules, they can’t qualify for the Fair Housing Act’s housing exemption for older persons. 

Can I Have My Grandchildren Stay For Sleepovers?

In most 55+ or senior communities, it is allowed to have sleepovers. So, most of the time, you can get your grandchildren over for a sleepover. However, rules can vary per community. 

A 55+ community can set its own rules regarding sleepovers. Often it is allowed to have someone over for a few nights. Many communities have set regulations for longer periods. Make sure to find out these rules for the specific 55+ community you want to live in. 

Can I Have A Pet In A 55+ Community?

As a general rule, having a pet in a 55+ community must be allowed. Regulations say that tenants must be permitted to own and keep pets in their units. However, a 55+ community can decide to set rules on how to keep household pets. 

The housing and urban development regulations, chapter V, subchapter C community facilities, describe the general requirements regarding household pets. A 55+ community in these regulations is referred to as a Public Housing Agency (PHA). According to these regulations, if a Public Housing Agency (55+ community) decides to set household pet rules, it must be in the best interest of the community and its tenants. I quoted this part from the regulations, “These rules must be reasonable related to providing a decent, safe, and sanitary living environment for existing and prospective tenants.” You can find the complete chapter of these regulations here. 

Rules For Assistance Pets In 55+ Communities

There are different rules when you have an assistance pet to help you with daily tasks because of a disability. The most significant difference is that public housing agencies (i.e., 55+ communities) cannot set rules or set any policies for pets that are used to help or assist persons with their disabilities. 

You can find the complete subpart of these regulations here. The subpart is titled Exclusion for animals that assist, support, or provide service to persons with disabilities.

55+ communities can set policies for regular pets. For example, it is not allowed to bring your pet into public community rooms. However, the subpart as mentioned above prohibits communities from setting such policies for assistance pets. 

Having a pet as a senior or for the elderly can be very important. Seniors with household pets often experience less feeling of loneliness and have a more active lifestyle. Staying physically active is essential when it comes to healthy aging. Also, the responsibility when taking care of a pet keeps the elderly more active and engaged. Which is related to improve mental (brain) activity. You can learn more about the importance of having a pet for seniors in my article, 11 Essential Reasons Of Why Older People Have Dogs

You are bound to some rules when you want to start living in a 55+ or senior community. Which is logical to keep up the quality of such communities. In the last part of this article, I’ll be focusing more on the benefits of living in 55+ communities.  

What Are The Benefits Of Living In A 55+ Community?

The most common benefits of living in a 55+ community are;

• Easy access to assistance when needed,
• Living among persons of the same generation,
• Organized activities. 

My parents-in-law live in a 55+ community. For them, the feeling of belonging to a community of people from the same generation is very important. 

Many seniors that live in a 55+ or senior community often have a more active lifestyle. When in a general physical condition, most of them can live individually or with their spouse and without daily care. 

Another great benefit of living in a 55+ community is that people look out for each other. For example, my mother-in-law recently got a knee replacement. During her recovery at home, her neighbors helping her and my father-in-law do groceries, cook dinner, and do some household activities. That sense of community feeling is very important for them and for elderly people in general. 

In fact, the oldest people in the world, living in the Blue Zones, have a high sense of community feeling. They all belong to their community and have active roles, even when 100 years or older. Next to a healthy lifestyle and diet, belonging to a community is probably one of the reasons why people in the Blue Zones reach this old age very often. 

You can read more about the benefits of living in a 55+ community in my article, 10 Benefits Of Living In A 55+ Community

If you’re looking for ideas to keep elderly entertained, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, I share 40 ideas to keep elderly (parents or grandparents) entertained at home and outside their home. So, let’s get started right away.

Ideas To Keep Elderly Busy At Home

1) Diamond Painting

One of the most popular hobbies seniors like to do is Diamond Painting. It’s a new creative art hobby that is a mix of paint by numbers and cross-stitch. This is how it works; you have a sticky canvas with numbers and hundreds or even thousands of different colored tiny diamonds, which you have to apply on the canvas by letter or number. After applying all diamonds, you have created a shimmering piece of art you can hang up at home.

It’s a perfect hobby for older people because it is straightforward, it calms the mind, reduces stress, boosts creativity and confidence, and fine-tunes their motor skills. And they can choose whatever canvas they want: animals, landscapes, mandalas, etc. They can do it for an hour per day or stay busy the entire day until they’re finished.

You can get them Monthly Diamond Paintings from Cratejoy home delivered to keep them entertained for the next couple of months.

2) Solving Puzzles

The classic way to keep your elderly parents entertained is by solving puzzles with them or puzzles they can do independently. This can be a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle, crossword puzzle, sudoku, 3D puzzle, or get the book: 399 Games, Puzzles & Trivia Challenges Specially Designed to Keep Your Brain Young. This book will definitely keep them entertained for weeks.

Solving puzzles is not only fun for the elderly, but it’s also good for their brain health. Studies have shown that it improves cognitive functions such as concentration, short-term memory, and general problem-solving. Keeping your brain challenged every day can even make your brain a couple of years younger.

3) Crocheting

If they love to knit, then you can introduce them to crocheting. Instead of using two long needles, you only need one hook to make knots to create beautiful things because they can make all sorts of stuff with crocheting. From socks, hats to coasters, a pouf, hairpieces, baby toys, etc. Get them a Crochet Kit, and older adults can crochet birthday gifts and special event gifts for the entire family throughout the year.

4) Cooking

If they’re still able to cook for themselves, you can introduce them to new recipes or cuisines with a fun and easy cookbook. Perhaps it sparkles a new hobby for them. With 3 meals a day, they’ll be entertained 7 days of the week. Or you can re-invent old family recipes together as a fun way to spend time with each other.

Sometimes not being able to open a jar anymore can resist them from cooking. But did you know there are many kitchen tools available especially designed for elderly people, to make cooking easy? Check them out here.

5) Birdwatching

With a simple bird feeder for their home, you can entertain your elderly parents with all the beautiful things nature offers. Bird-watching is a very social activity for someone alone at home. And if they love it, you can even get them a bird journal, binoculars, or a bird-watching book with information about species and how to attract them.

6) Chair Yoga

Yoga is perfect for the mind and body. It improves flexibility, strength, and joint strain and reduces stress. And for the elderly with limited mobility, chair yoga is a gentle form of yoga while sitting. Perhaps a yoga instructor can teach them chair yoga at home or show them this youtube video.

7) Baking

Someone with a sweet tooth will love to bake. You can ask them to bake your favorite cookies or a birthday cake if they need that extra push to get started. Also, baking is a great thing to do together with them on a Sunday afternoon.

8) Indoor Gardening

You don’t need a garden to start gardening. There are awesome indoor gardening projects they can do such as vertical gardening, bonsai tree sculpting to growing your own herbs or vegetables inside.

9) Sticker By Number

Sticker by number is similar to painting by number, only it’s with stickers. It’s easier, faster and no mess. It’s a stress free activity that can be great for the elderly person on your mind. They can sticker animals, flowers, trees, landscapes etc.

10) Reading

Reading is a great exercie for the brain. It helps to prevent age-related cognitive decline and has many other health benefits according to Healthline.

Encouring older people to read is not only good for their health but it also enables them to travel to different worlds without leaving their comfy chair at home. It’s the cheapest way to travel.

An awesome book you can get is The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules: A Novel (League of Pensioners). It’s #1 internationally-bestselling book from author Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg’s. A quirky novel about a group of seniors that want to upgrade the quality of their life and leads them to white collar crime.

11) Listen To Music

Make a nice play list of their favorite music that they can listen to when they’re alone at home.

12) Listen To Podcasts

Introduce them to the world of podcasts. Find out what interests them and see if you can find a podcast about it that they can listen to. Perhaps they even learn a thing or two along the way. Or they get a taste of what podcasts are and continue to listen to new ones every day or week.

13) Play An Instrument

They can learn how to play an instrument. And yes that is very possible. Research have show that older adults who continue to learn and challenge their mind every day learning becomes easier. And knowing how to play an instrument might be one of their oldest dreams which you can motivate them into pursuing. One of the easiest instruments for older adults are ukulele, piano, tambourine, bongos.

14) Painting

Painting can be a great hobby for your elderly parents to express themselves creatively. They can paint on a blank canvas with oil, acryl or water paint. Or you can get them a paint by number canvas to get them into painting if they’ve never done it before.

15) Sculpting

Sculpting is creating a shape from a piece of material. This can be anything from clay, wood, paper, stone to ice. Elderly with less strength in their hands can benefit from sculpting with clay. And elderly who are still active might find joy in woodcarving. You can find all sorts of sculpting kits on Amazon, click here.

16) Coloring

Every kid loves to draw and color. As we become adults we don’t have time to color and we forgot that we love to do it. Often in retirement, people reclaim their childhood hobbies, so chances are that the elderly person you’re looking to entertain might love coloring too. You can get them a sketching book or an adult coloring book.

17) Play Boardgames

Boardgames are always a fun activity to enjoy eachothers company. Dust of that classic boardgame and make it a habit to play games. Or introduce the nextdoor neighboor who loves to play boardgames too if you can’t visit that often.

18) Jewelry Making

A fashionable elderly woman will love to make jewelry making her new hobby. She can make jewerly for herself, her friends in the retirement home or her grandkids. With this DIY Bracelet Craft Kit she defenitely will score points with her hip and trendy grandchilderen.

19) Collecting

Another great way to entertain elderly is to get them into collecting. He or she can start collecting stamps, coins, vinyl records, comic books, toys, action figures, rocks, wine etc. They might allready have a great collection of certain things and they can expand their collection over time. Collecting is a lifelong skill so they’ll be entartained the rest of their life.

20) Genealogy

Seniors love genealogy. Many retirees love to learn more about their family history, because it gives them a sense of identity and better understanding about themselves, their family and their life. Getting to know your past also creates the opportunity to connect with new people, which is one of the keys to happiness in retirement.

With an Ancestry DNA kit you can help him or her on the way to get a more precise ethnicity estimate which will lead to more historical and geographic insight about their past. And it will help them to build their family tree or get in contact with living relatives.

Ideas To Keep Elderly Entertained Outside Their Home

21) Walking

The easiest way to keep elderly enterained outside their home is to motivate them to go walking. It stimulates the blood flow, activates the muscles and uplifts the mood and that is why walking is a must. You can walk around the block with them and just talk or see if they can adopt a dog parttime or fultime. This for sure will get them out of the door every day.

22) Aqua Aerobics

You can find out if there is an aqua aerobics class in the area which he or she can attend. Aqua aerobics is a great exercise for elderly people because of the low risk of injury. Plus it builds strengths and improves heart and lung function. And joining a class is also a great way to meet other people so they feel less lonely.

23) Swimming

Swimming is gentle on the joints and improves overall pshycial and mental health and is therefore a perfect activity for elderly people. You can check out if there is a swimming class for elderly at your nearby swimmingpool or go swimming with them every week or month as a new bonding activity.

24) Exercise Class

You can sign him or her up for an exercise class. Perhaps there are exercise classes sceduled in the retirement home or retirement community. Or another place you can check is the local senior center. And perhaps the local gym offers classes for seniors as well. It’s best to find an exercise class that fits into their physical ability or else it’s not fun for them to attend.

25) Art Class

Apply them for a fun art class if they’re interested in experessing themselves creatively. They’ll meet like minded people that can turn into new friends which will help them to stay active.

26) Volunteering

Many people love volunteering. It gives them a sense of purpose and fulfillment, because helping others makes you happy as well. Therefore volunteerting is one of the best ways to keep elderly people entertained. It keeps them active within the community, they meet a lot of people and have a reason to get up in the morning.

There all sorts of volunteering projects elderly people can do. Depending on their mobility it can be helping out in the local soup kitchen to writing letters to lonely seniors.

27) Join A (Book/ Lunch/ Social) Club

Ask around about elderly book, lunch or social clubs he or she can join. Probably connecting your elderly parents to other people will make them happier over time. Being part of a group fights loneliness and depression and will help them make their life more joyable.

But it doesn’t have to be an elderly club per se. Being part of a club with younger people keeps you young and makes you feel part of society. Because that’s what often lacks. Elderly people feel left out and not part of society anymore. So making them part of a club to socialize and to do an activity they love, makes them feel valued and seen.

28) Visit A Senior Community Center

It’s worth to visit a local senior center to see what activities they organize for elderly people. Perhaps you’ll be introduced to an entirely new world you didn’t even know existed. Perhaps there is an activity you’re elderly parents love to attend.

29) Gardening

Gardening is one of the healthiest hobbies out there. I wrote an entire article about the benefits of gardening for seniors which you can read here.

You can help them gardening their own garden, see if they can join a community garden to meet other people or create a (vegetavble) garden which they can easily maintain themselves in the future.

30) Field Trip

Go on a field trip together to visit a national park, musuem, ancestry grounds, local farmers market or to see family. Especially when they’re at home all the time the chance of scenery and companionship during a trip will make their day.

31) Spa Day

Treat your elderly parents or grandparents on a relaxing spa day.

32) Cycling

Cycling is a great activity for elderly people.

A moderate-intensity aerobic exercise such as cycling “for as less as 30 minutes can improve some aspects of cognition, most prominently for memory, reasoning and planning and can shorten the time taken to complete the tests.” According to this study. And regular exercise increases blood flow to the brain which will improve brain function. Cycling also improves heart health and strengthens muscles to maintain balance that will keep elderly people more indepenent as they age.

Now that we’ve established all the benefits to cycling it’s also good to know that getting outside and seeing different scenerys can enhance their quality of life. Viewing the world from a bicycle makes you feel alive and that is why it’s good for elderly people to cycle.

Make them enthisuatic about cycling to the grocery store. Or if they’re limited in their mobility you can get creative by renting a tricycle or hop on a tandem together on a sunday afternoon.

33) Visit Movie Theater

Check out the movie calender and visit a movie theater together. A lot of movie theater organize special senior days or plan classic films during the week for elderly people. Perhaps one of they’re favorite movies is playing soon. And the perks of being old is that you can get senior discount on tickets.

34) Visit A Museum

Ask which museam they’ve always wanted to visit and organize a trip to visit that museum. Or be a tourist in your own town and visit museums you normally wouldn’t visit.

35) Geocaching

To they like to explore and love treasure hunting? The geochaching is a fun activity to do with elderly people. Fit people can walk and others can attend in wheelchairs it doesn’t matter. You can do geocaching has a group activity.

Geochachig is the modern version of treasure-hunting. You use use a handheld GPS navigator to find the millions of treasures (geocaches) hidden around your area. It gives a walk around the block a little more interesting.

36) Tai Chi

Tai Chi is a gentle exercise by doing a series of stretches. It improves balance which reduces falls which makes the perfect exercise for elderly people. And it’s a stress reliever.

You can try to find classes nearby or watch Tai Chi lessons on YouTube.

37) Dancing

Another great exercise for elderly people is dancing. It’s fun to dance and it’s therapeutic and a very natural thing to do. From line dancing to doing the cha cha cha, they’re endless dances you can do with elderly peope.

38) Fishing

Also a great activity to do with elderly people is to go fishing. Being outdoors fishinhg lowers the heart rate and blood pressure and also reduces stress. At the shore they relax their worries away.

39) Croquet

A great outdoor game to play on a beautiful day in the park or on the lawn is the french originated game Croquet. Which is an easy game to play with two, four or six players. Check out the best reviewed Croquet Set is from GoSports including 6 color mallets, 6 balls, 9 wickets, 2 end posts, rules of the game, and a handy carrying bag.

40) Antiquing

Visit antique markets and garage sales to shop for antiques. This is a great activity for an elderly person with a great eye for quality products and a gut feeling to finding treasures surrounded by trash.

Are you planning to retire to Southern Europe and doubting between Portugal or Spain? In this article, I’ll explain why Portugal is slightly better to retire to than Spain. 

In general, Portugal is better to retire to than Spain. Portugal’s winters are mild, and summers are warm, which makes it perfect for staying year-round. Winters in Spain can be wet and cold. The cost of living in Portugal is lower compared to Spain. Portugal’s NHR tax program offers non-residents favorable taxes for 10 years on income earned abroad from pensions and other income sources. 

We lived in Portugal and Spain for several months during our travels around the world. Also, we met a lot of retirees spending their retirement in both Portugal and Spain. Both countries are lovely to live in. So let’s dig in deeper and find out why Portugal is more favorable to retire to. 

Portugal’s Climate Is More Favorable Year-round

Most people retire to the most Southern European countries because of the climate. The Mediterranean climate is known for its pleasant weather. When comparing the weather between Spain and Portugal all year round, Portugal is definitely a winner for retirees. 

The southern region in Portugal, the Algarve, is known for its very mild winters with an average temperature of 16 degrees Celcius (66 Fahrenheit) during the winter month and not much rain. December is the wettest month and has an average of just 12 days of rain in the Algarve region. 

The Metropolitan region of Lisbon and the area of Porto in the north of Portugal also have a mild climate. However, winters can be much colder with more rain and sometimes even snow in these regions. 

Spain is known for its warm summers, and with its long coastline, there are many places to find which are ideal for retirees to spend their time. However, the winters in Spain are much colder. 

Of course, Spain is a much bigger country than Portugal, so it also has more different climates, depending on where you are. And suppose you like a more winter setting with a chance of snow. In that case, you probably are more likely to prefer the mountainous areas of Spain instead of the warmer Portugal. 

Still, the reason for most retirees to move to a different country is the pleasant climate. And with that in mind, the most southern region of Portugal is the big winner. 

Cost Of Living In Portugal Is Lower

Portugal is better to retire to when comparing the average cost of living. Portugal’s average monthly cost of living is $ 250 a month cheaper than Spain’s. It’s another important reason for many retirees to choose a specific country. You just want to get the most out of your pension or retirement fund! 

The Lisbon area is the most expensive in Portugal, which is logical because it is the most popular among expats and the heart of Portugal’s economy. 

However, the Algarve region, the most popular among retirees, is very cheap to stay. Depending on which village in the Algarve area, you’ll have enough on a monthly budget of around $ 2000. You can even find cheaper places when you look for more undiscovered villages. For example, Tavira is becoming more popular every year and is known as the best place to retire to in Portugal. A monthly budget of $ 1500 can cover all the living costs in Tavira, including renting a small apartment. Read more; What Is The Best Place To Retire In Portugal?

When you choose to live in more remote villages, like half an hour drive from the more popular areas, your living cost will be much lower. According to Livingcosts.org, Portuguese citizens have a cost of living of $ 967 a month per person.

The average living costs in Spain are much higher per person, $ 1215 a month. However, these costs can vary greatly depending on where in Spain you choose to retire to. For example, the Barcelona area is one of the most expensive areas to live in Spain. But the famous region Costa Brava, which is only 60 kilometers from Barcelona, is much cheaper and very popular among retirees. 

Portugal Has A Better Tax Climate For Retirees

When someone says you can save on taxes, you’re probably all ears and like, ‘tell me more!’ When you retire to Portugal, there’s a favorable tax program you might be eligible to apply for, Portugal’s NHR program. This program is one of the biggest reasons why Portugal is better to retire to instead of Spain. 

The Portuguese NHR program stands for ‘non-habitual resident tax regime.’ This tax regime offers Portuguese residents and investors reduced tax rates and sometimes even full exemptions on different income sources. 

Since 2020 the rules of the NHR have changed. The most significant change is that retirement income like pensions is tax rated at a flat rate of 10%. Which is still a very low tax rate compared to other countries. 

To be eligible for the NHR, you must either be a Portuguese citizen or an investor in Portugal. Global Citizen Solutions has a complete guide on how to be qualified and apply for the Portuguese NHR. 

VISA application in Portugal is Easier

For NON-EU citizens, it might be more interesting to retire to Portugal because the registration process to become a resident and get a Portuguese passport is easier. With an EU passport, you’re allowed to travel without restrictions in the Schengen Area. Most people without an EU passport are only allowed for 90 days in the EU. So, suppose you want to spend like 6 months or longer in Portugal or Spain. In that case, it’s probably interesting to register as a resident. 

Mediterranean Culture in Both Countries Is Great

As I mentioned at the start of this article, we lived for several months in Portugal and Spain. We had a great time in both countries. Portugal is our favorite during the winter months because of its climate. We’re actually spending a lot of our winters in the Algarve. 

When all of the above isn’t a factor for you when deciding where to retire to, I would say there isn’t much difference between the two countries. 

The culture is similar. People love to spend time outside, and life is generally slow. Getting good food, spending time with friends and family is important in both Portuguese and Spanish culture. 

Generally speaking, Spain has a bit more to offer regarding culture, different lifestyles, and communities. This has a lot to do with the fact Spain is much bigger than Portugal. When traveling throughout Spain, you’ll find a beautiful coastline, mountains, green areas, and different metropolitan areas. 

Portugal has basically three different popular areas. The southern area of the Algarve (which is most popular among retirees), the metropolitan area of Lisbon, and the famous green area of Porto (where you’ll find lovely wines and port). 

I would say Portugal is better to retire to because you get much more value for your money as a retiree. And once you’ve registered as a Portuguese resident with a Schengen passport, you’re allowed to travel without restrictions to Spain and other EU countries as well. 

In your sixties, a lot of things change. You’re going to retire soon, which is a major life change, or you’re already retired, and you’re looking for new activities to enjoy in everyday life. And you have the desire to learn a couple of new skills or go back to school, which is why you might wonder, can you learn after 60?

As a general rule, learning time is longer at an older age. Research shows that seniors in their 60s can excel at learning when they’re challenged mentally every day. Exercise can increase the ability to learn. Being physically active nurtures the growth of new brain cells. Therefore learning is easier for 60-years-olds with an active lifestyle.

Now that you know that you can learn after 60, let’s dive in deeper because, in this article, I share scientific proof of why learning is ageless, the benefits to learning after 60, how to learn best, and what new things to learn when you’re 60 years or older. So let’s start unpacking.

Scientific Proof That Learning Has No Age Limit

The public opinion is that learning is hard at an older age. Some people have heard it’s impossible or maybe you’ve experienced that learning is more difficult compared to when you’re were younger. Perhaps that’s why you’re reading my article right now. Well, let me prove you otherwise.

We all know that kids are like sponges and that learning becomes easy for them, which is very true. Only that doesn’t mean that learning at an older age isn’t possible. Often we stopped learning because we dedicated our time elsewhere. Kids spend their whole childhood at school learning new things and skills. And because life is new to them, they even continue learning outside school. This is the key to their success. Learning is easy for them because they do it every day.

According to this research with 60-year-olds and older participants were challenged to learn at least three new skills simultaneously for 3 months. “Learning multiple skills simultaneously increased cognitive abilities in older adults by the midpoint of the intervention, to levels similar to performance in a separate sample of middle-aged adults, 30 years younger.” This means your brain will function younger when challenged thoroughly enough, and learning becomes easier as you challenge yourself mentally regularly.

And according to a study, 60-year-olds often underestimate the power of their brain memory and ability to learn. Also, the lack of confidence keeps them from pursuing learning new things. Then it becomes a downward spiral when you don’t challenge your brain frequently, which will result in you noticing that it becomes harder to learn new things, and then your confidence goes down, and then you’ll resist learning, etc. And you’re off down the rabbit hole. Perhaps even up to the point that you’re convinced that you can’t learn anything after 60.

To make learning easy at 60 is to keep learning as you age. Learning rewires the brain and optimizes the brain through a process called myelination, no matter the age. It’s the process where you experience becoming better at a skill with time and practice.

Now that you know that you CAN learn after 60. But to give you an extra push, here is an inspiring story of Oneita Sumsion. 90 years old, and graduated with a journalism degree from Brigham Young University in Utah in June 2020. And she is not the only one. Countless 70, 80, and 90-year-olds graduate from colleges and universities across the country. If that doesn’t prove to you that learning is ageless, then I don’t know what will. Perhaps the next chapter might give you that extra motivation you need to start learning or challenge yourself academically even more.

Benefits Of Learning For Older Adults

Whatever you want to learn, it’s not only fun but also very good for you.

Improves Your Brain Health

According to Frank Benedict Marxer, a geriatric specialist at Piedmont, mental activity can reduce the risk of developing conditions such as dementia.

Improves Your Brain Function

Learning improves your learning performance and improves your cognitive functions in the brain, such as your concentration, attention to detail, memory, and problem-solving skills. Your brain reshapes itself with mental activity. Just as physical exercising, you train your muscles to become stronger. Learning does the same to your brain. Your brain is malleable also at an older age, so when you train it, it becomes stronger. According to Harvard Medical School, “Practicing a new and challenging activity is a good bet for building and maintaining cognitive skills.“

Boosts Your Confidence

Learning something new and experiencing your growth is a major confidence booster. You’ll feel more empowered, which helps to create a more positive mindset. And gives you the motivation to keep going and expanding.

Creates Opportunities To Socialize

Depending on what you’re learning and where you’re learning, it creates opportunities for making friends. If you go back to school or attend a class, you’ll meet like-minded people. And staying socially stimulated is one of the keys to happiness in retirement.

Did you know that more than 43 percent of seniors experience loneliness regularly? According to the University of California San Franciso, this can be the cause of serious health problems and even death because loneliness is just as deadly as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

It Gives You A Purpose

Learning a new skill instantly gives you a new goal in life. It’s a reason you want to get up in the morning and gives your life a new purpose. You’re less likely to waste your time, which helps you to beat boredom as well.

If you would like to know more about how you can make the most of your years in retirement, I’ve got something amazing for you. My ebook: Five Steps To Happiness In Retirement is the book to read for anyone that wants to find happiness and fulfillment and can use some guidance to find their passion, structure their day, and have the best time of their life in retirement.

What Can I Learn At 60 Years Old?

Now that we established that you CAN learn at 60 and that learning keeps your mind young and healthy and comes with other amazing benefits. You’re probably at the point that you might wonder, what can I learn at 60 years old? Well, to state the obvious, you can learn anything you want, no matter how old you are. But I’ve got some great ideas for you that I will share with you in a second. First, I want to share with you an amazing platform to learn new skills.

The best resource where you can learn different skills from the world’s best all from one place is Masterclass. With Masterclass, you can learn at your own pace, time, and device. Without having any experience, these Masterclasses are great for anyone who wants to learn something new or upgrade their skills and talents.

You can watch thousands of lessons from the best as they share their stories, skills, shortcuts, failures, and successes. From Gordon Ramsay, Thomas Keller to Samuel L. Jackson, Anna Wintour, Serena Williams, and so many more world’s greatest. There are 100+ different classes available on the platform, and new ones are added every month. When you want to learn anything, this is the best platform for it.

50 Skills To Learn At 60

1) A New Language – Babbel is the #1 Selling Language Learning App

2) To Play An Instrument

3) Drawing

4) Writing – On Masterclass, you’ll have access to 20 different writing masterclasses from the world’s best writers

5) Home Repairs

6) Car Repairs

7) Gardening – On Masterclass, you can follow the Gardening Masterclass of Ron Finley

8) Interior Designing

9) Photography – Check out the Photography Masterclass of Annie Leibovitz.

10) How To Cook Like A Chef – With Masterclass, you have to more than 15 different cooking classes from renowned chefs like Aaron Frankin, Gordon Ramsay, Wolfgang Puck, Alice Waters, Massimo Bottura, etc.

11) Dancing

12) Change A Flat Tire

13) Painting

14) Start A Fire

15) First Aid Basics

16) Meditation

17) Start A Business – Also, Masterclass has amazing business classes from the world’s most successful entrepreneurs.

18) Investing

19) Yoga

20) Surfing

21) Massaging

22) Surviving In The Wilderness – Check out the Masterclass of Jessie Krebs.

23) Decluttering

24) Accounting And Bookkeeping

25) Blogging

26) Computer Skills

27) Editing Videos

28) Public Speaking

29) Graphic Design

30) Home Brewing

31) Pottery

32) Song Writing – Check out Alicia Key’s Songwriting Class on MasterClass

33) Juggling

34) Baking

35) Self-Defence

36) Grow Your Own Vegetables

37) Card and Magic Tricks

38) Private Investigating

39) Writing Poems

40) Landscaping

41) Grilling – Check out Aaron Franklin’s Texas Style BBQ Class

42) Weaving

43) Wood Working

44) Improve Spelling

45) Bowling

46) Train A Pet – Check out Brandon McMillan Dog Training Class

47) Floristry

48) Horse Riding

49) Sailing

50) Swimming

How Do Seniors Learn Best?

Younger brains use different parts of the brain while learning compared to older brains. And there are a couple of things you can do to improve your learning skills.

First of all, it’s good to know how you learn best according to your age. It gives you a better understanding of how the average people of 60 years and older learn, but you always need to be aware of your own learning style preferences.

Research about learning style preferences among older adults found out the following: “More of the 55 to 65 age group preferred the Accommodator learning style (learning by feeling and doing), more of the 66 to 74 age group preferred the Diverger style (learning by feeling and watching), whereas the 75 and older group preferred the Assimilator style (learning by thinking and watching). Therefore, it is suggested that not all older learners are active, hands-on learners as adult education literature suggests, but rather with age there is a tendency to become more reflective and observational in the learning environment.”

Tips To Improve Learning

• Excersing rerugrly nurtthers the growt of new brain cells. It also improves blood flow to the brain, reduces stress levels and potentially lower dementia risk according to this article of the Cleveland Clinic.

• Eating a brain- boosting diet can also improve learning and supports brain function for both short- and long-term periods according to an article in the Medical News Today. Your brain usus around 20 percent of the body’s calories so it neeas good nutrient to function properly.

• Sleeping strengthens your memory according the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Therefore getting enough and quality sleep is vital for your brain to function at it’s best.

• Compassion goes a long way when it comes to learning. So cut yourself some slack when you’re trying to learn something new. Everyone has to start from scratch and you don’t learn better or faster when you’re frustrated or annoyed with yourself. bluv