Dakboard: A technical solution that has helped us.

My Mom is currently in AL, with very bad short-term memory. I thought I'd share something we use with my Mom that has been very helpful. It is called a Dakboard - you can do an internet search on it to get details. Basically it is a large flatscreen that you hang on the wall. Through its wireless connection you can configure it to do things like show a calendar and photos, etc.

We have it configured to show a shared Google calendar. My 5 siblings and I can all add things to the calendar, and Mom can see it. We can also all add things to a common photo site (there are a number of options) and she can see the photos.

I'm pretty technically savvy and was able to set it up fairly easily. There were some tricks that I had to figure out, but if someone who is good at that sort of thing is doing it, it goes pretty smoothly.

Now Mom always has an updated calendar. We sometimes have to remind her to look at it, but it really has helped her remember that she has an activity that day, or coming up. She can also see updated photos regularly, which is good because she has forgotten how to use the computer. And the shared calendar is really great for us kids to coordinate visits, appointments, etc.

I thought it might be helpful for other people. Let me know if you have questions.