Blog - Alison's Notebook

Woman over 60 in a red parka, gray knit hat, scarf and gloves, gray joggers and hiking boots on a snowy small-town main street

8 Warm Winter Outfits For Women Over 60 (Cozy And Stylish)

Do you feel cold all winter, no matter what you wear? You’re not alone. Many of us feel the cold more as we get older. Our hands get chilly and …

Corner of a laundry room with a boxed roaster oven, a box of frames, a brass floor lamp and a donation tote waiting to leave the house

Too Good to Toss, Won’t Sell: The 24-Hour Rule That Got It Out of My House

I made a mistake with my crystal punch bowl. It didn’t sell. I wrote about that this fall, the week my granddaughter helped me list things for sale. Twelve little …

Woman over 50 in a red turtleneck, navy quilted vest, dark jeans and brown riding boots on a small-town main street

8 Turtleneck Outfits For Women Over 50 (Warm And Polished)

Do you reach for a turtleneck the minute the weather turns cold? Many of us do. A turtleneck keeps your neck warm, looks neat with almost anything, and goes from …

Old fishing hat with lures resting on an open box from the closet beside a phone and coffee on a kitchen table

Decluttering Over 80 When Your Kids Live Far Away

“Is that Dad’s fishing hat?” That was the text my brother sent from three states away, the first Sunday we tried it. My mother was 82. She was sitting at …

Woman over 50 in a red plaid wool winter coat walking down an ordinary small-town main street

8 Best Winter Coat Styles For Women Over 50 (Warm And Flattering)

Is your winter coat the piece you wear most and love least? For a lot of us, it is. We pull it on every day from November to March. It …

Birthday card with a handwritten list tucked inside, banana bread, coffee and a shoebox of old photos on a kitchen table

The Decluttering Checklist I Wish My Mother Had at 75

This is the list I wish I had tucked into my mother’s birthday card the year she turned 75. She would have rolled her eyes at it. (She did not …

Ankle boots outfits over 60: silver-haired woman in a black turtleneck, olive plaid midi skirt, tights, and black block-heel ankle boots on a town sidewalk

8 Ankle Boots Outfits Over 60 (Easy And Flattering)

Do you have a pair of ankle boots you love, but you’re never quite sure what to wear with them? You’re not alone. Ankle boots are one of the most …

Yellow vintage Pyrex mixing bowl with pancake batter next to a stack of pancakes and syrup on a kitchen table

What’s Actually Worth Money in Your Kitchen Cabinets (Pyrex, Fire King, Corning Ware)

My older granddaughter was halfway through her second pancake when she picked up my mixing bowl and turned it upside down. “Grandma,” she said, “do you know what this is?” …

Small reading room with a chair, white bookshelves and three boxes of books labeled for the library sale, Little Free Library and nursing home

All the Books, and Nobody Wants Them: Where Mine Went

Eleven boxes of books left our house this fall, and I know where every one of them went. That still surprises me. For years, I thought nobody wanted old books …

Canvas donation tote filled with a sweater, sheets and a vase hanging on a hook in a laundry room

Who Actually Takes What: My Item-by-Item Donation Guide for Women Over 60

There’s a canvas tote hanging on a hook in my laundry room. Most weeks, something goes into it. A sweater I don’t wear. A vase from the back of the …