"toilet trained" 2 and half year old still has daily accidents. Help

[Gmac2009]

Our boy has been out of nappies for 6months but continues to have accidents.
It's more unusual for him to have a dry/clean day than not. What can we do?
He understands the concept and asks to go to the loo but seems to forget everything one day and be brilliant the next. It's driving me mad!
All advice, tips very welcome.

Aw bless him,good luck.

Good move, Gmac

Honestly, it'll be so easy when, in a couple of months or so, he tells you he wants to wear pants

He is still well within the normal limits to still be in a nappy anyway!

And welcome to MN

I feel like we've given him this horrible pressure unnecessarily.
Oh the guilt. I think parenting for number 2 will be easier - the poor first born has been the guinee pig!

Oh don't worry, he won't remember any of it! (I speak from experience )

Hope things settle down - and remember just because he's in a nappy doesn't mean that he won't use the potty/toilet; he may well do both for a little while but having the nappy takes the pressure off.

(Oh and I reckon nearly all of the mums telling you their children were trained at 2 were fibbing - they may well have been toilet timed, not toilet trained. Or out of nappies but needing a change of undies 8 times a day... )

Gmac, why don't you use pullups so he can still pull them down and do wees a few times a day but the daily accident won't matter?

All the books say pull-ups are evil and not to use them.
Mind you, all the books said he'd be ready to train by 2...

IMO, this is precisely the situation where pull ups are good because they do allow you/the child to pull them up and down if they ask to use the toilet.

With both DSs I used them as a step backwards after a failed attempt at training without going right back to nappies. They're more expensive though.

They are useless for real toilet training though.

The books don't know your child. He's ready when he is ready

Ready to train by 2? Personally I think that is suspect.

In my experience most children are well over two and a half before trained.

It's so reassuring to get your views.
I'm just sorry we put him through 6months of this before coming to our senses.
He's back in nappies today and it's a weight off all our shoulders.
Think we'll skip the pull-ups just because of the cost.