Now that it's behind me, I can say that the only bad thing about turning 50 is, well, turning 50.

Change a tire, carve a turkey, ask for a raise. Last week we listed these as some of the things every woman should know how to do by age 50. But what ...

Ask for a raise, get around a foreign country, open a bottle of champagne and much more.

As CEO of Swank Productions, an event organizer in New York City, Maya Kalman has thrown her fair share of spectacular milestone birthday soirees. But...

Barbie, the missile-breasted doll who never ages, actually turns 54 today. And while it's not one of those milestone birthdays -- the ones that end in a 0 or a 5 -- we think we know how she's feeling about this one.

My turning 50 coincided with my grandmother turning 100 years old. And as with most old people, I began to reminisce about my life and the many lessons that my grandmother has given me. Then, a friend encouraged me to put those stories to print and write a memoir. At first I thought she was joking, and then I thought she might be drunk, but then I realized she was serious.

One of the perks of being 50-years-old-and-then-some is this freedom-inducing newfound ability to simply not care in the same way you used to when you were, say, a spry 49-year-old. And that's a good thing because caring less about what isn't important saves time and energy.

I have recently discovered that I am not the only post-50-year-old woman who recently began to embark on a new level of professional success once I focused primarily on my own needs, rather than the needs of others.

Instead of wishing I were 10 years younger I am embracing my present self and the joys that life gives me at this age, in this moment, in this body and with this mind. Yes my friends, I truly feel as if I have finally arrived. And so, let the party begin!

A few weeks ago I turned 56. To commemorate and celebrate, I ran 5.6 miles around Central Park. It felt good knowing I could run that distance and still be fit enough to join my husband and daughters at a birthday dinner downtown a few hours later. That's a sea change from when I turned 50.

Some great news was just released that is sure to make big believers in the power of vitamin D smile... and maybe just a little smug.

I turned 50 last week. My younger friends smiled sympathetically and offered hugs, as if I'd just received a cancer diagnosis. Older ones grinned conspiratorially, as if I'd suddenly succumbed to their evil charms and crossed over to the dark side.

Certain birthdays give us the chance to take stock. Have we met our goals? Where are we? As I map out where I want to go on this, my sabbatical year, I wonder in the next five years where will we go?

It is hard to shake the feeling that comes with thinking that you were almost killed. But despite being physically weaker, I have become mentally tougher. Each and every day I make a concerted effort to stay in the moment. I listen more intently to people. I use love to guide me through each day.

We are part of the largest demographic in the history of the world. We are a political powerhouse and an economic force.

I know many women age 50 and beyond who appear to be entrapped in the same old routines, poised and mature but hampered by grim rigidity. I know others, though, who remain fun and adventurous, unafraid to stretch their comfort zone no matter how old they are and what anyone else thinks. They are the ones who can still party all night -– even if it is once every few months and it takes that long for them to recover.

Enough already with the negative news. Instead of dwelling on the bad stuff (or Kim Kardashian), let's focus on a few things every day that will make us say 'Yay!'

The key to beating osteoporosis is doing a few simple things that will keep your bones strong: eat calcium-rich foods, get an adequate amount of Vitamin D, and do strength-training exercises several times a week.

Women in Manhattan work on their careers and wait until the last fertile egg to have a baby. I have many friends in my age group with young children. Though I'm not sure how many actually go to the lengths I do to keep their age from their children.

When my mother had a kidney stone, she called me to tell me to get to the hospital first: "Go get a Sharpie at the nurses' station and blacken out my age on the side of the bed," she told me.

Among the indignities of getting older, the minute I turned 50 I started getting insulted by my mail.