Father with Alzheimer's going into Memory Care. Should I send along the old faded or yellowed photos that he is used to seeing in his house - if he still can see them with his glaucoma - or should I make new, more current prints of the family?
Do what you can to make him comfortable in his new surroundings. Send the old pictures. He'll be better able to relate to them. Furnish his room with things he is familiar with. Go ahead and create new pics also. He may not, however, recognize the people in the newer pics as relatives. Reminiscing and having him talk about the "good old days" is good therapy.
I have such an attachment to the old. Some I was looking through last night had the year printed along the side of the curly cut border, saying 1935. However, Dad may not have that attachment and may prefer blowups. My idea would be, dependent on what you can afford, one of each. If he has room. Or present one of each to him and tell him "Dad, you get to keep one, and I get to keep one, and you get first choice".
When I moved my father into memory care I sent my parent's wedding photo that was faded, it was the memory of the frame and picture not necessarily the picture. Another thing my siblings and I did was send a memory book we had made a few years previously. My brothers and I typed up memories from our childhood (and later). For example, my oldest brother wrote about when my father was called back into service (Navy) for Korea. Later memories were able to be added to from other siblings. Aides at the Memory Care facility could pick a page and read about things with Dad to get him talking or when one of us visited we could pick a memory. Each sibling picked a different color font to use. The other item we made was a simple family tree. If your dad talks about his memories please do yourself a favor and write these things down even if you're not sure of the accuracy. Items we wrote down from visits the last few months of life were accurate when we looked them up later. Try to be there however you can for each stage. If your facility has video calls, use it even if dad doesn't understand or talk much. Share with him. Ask him questions about the past that may be easier for him to answer. Best of Luck and know there are many resources available at Aging Care and Alzheimers.org.
Send the ones he knows. Change is so difficult for those with dementia. You don't want him wondering who all those people in the pics are. Their memories seem to digress, so he might not associate the picture and person.
My idea would be, dependent on what you can afford, one of each. If he has room. Or present one of each to him and tell him "Dad, you get to keep one, and I get to keep one, and you get first choice".
Another thing my siblings and I did was send a memory book we had made a few years previously. My brothers and I typed up memories from our childhood (and later). For example, my oldest brother wrote about when my father was called back into service (Navy) for Korea. Later memories were able to be added to from other siblings. Aides at the Memory Care facility could pick a page and read about things with Dad to get him talking or when one of us visited we could pick a memory. Each sibling picked a different color font to use.
The other item we made was a simple family tree. If your dad talks about his memories please do yourself a favor and write these things down even if you're not sure of the accuracy. Items we wrote down from visits the last few months of life were accurate when we looked them up later.
Try to be there however you can for each stage. If your facility has video calls, use it even if dad doesn't understand or talk much. Share with him. Ask him questions about the past that may be easier for him to answer.
Best of Luck and know there are many resources available at Aging Care and Alzheimers.org.