Floaties/Life Jacket Suggestions for 21-Month-old

Puddle jumpers are wonderful!! Life jackets give too much buoancy to the lower part of the body until the child knows how to intentionally keep their head out of the water. Puddle jumpers are like waterwings and a ski belt in one.

I loved the swim sweater for my 2 year old little guy, just type it into google to see what it looks like. Gives them lots of freedom with their arms and legs, and keeps them above water very well.

My kids do not use life jackets unless we are on the boat or in the water at the lake. We also do not/did not hold them in the water. They all are able to stand on the pool steps within our reach and will play and even swim out to us at short range. Our 5 year old is on a swim team with 8+ year olds, our 4 year old is able to go off the board and swim back to the ladder and our 2 year old will jump off the side and is able to get her head back out of the water before we grab her. That being said, when they were young we were ALWAYS within reach and started teaching them proper pool safety and age appropriate swimming techniques. I think as long are you are within reach you shouldn't have to worry about floaties. Teach him how to put his face in, blow bubbles, kick his legs, etc...

At that age my oldest was willing to sit in a baby float, but my youngest was not & I just had to hold him.
Will he sit in a baby floatation ring? if not you could try a full swim suit that has a small floaty ring built into the suit. It would keep him upright without him having to balance himself like he would have to in the floaty suits that have the foam inserts. He would still be able to splash his hands in the water (unlike in the baby floaty). I would suggest something that supports him under his crotch so he doesn't accidentially slip out. With my boys it was hit & miss to find something they liked.

God bless!

i second (or third) the puddle jumpers!! My 23 mos old loves hers!

I just ordered Stearns Puddle Jumpers after listening to a rep from Children's Hospital (http://www.knowbeforeyougo.org/) recommend them since they are Coast Guard approved (You need to look at your child's weight.) They sell them online and in stores (like Target and maybe Academy). The Stearns site also has a video so you can see them in action. At first, to me, it looked like the kids would not have much freedom with the arm floatie piece being attached to the chest piece....but they seem to move ok. We plan to use these at the lake.

I have a swimway baby spring float that my son loves.(he's 2) It has a net seating area that his feet/legs slide into then has a small intertube thing around it. So he is sitting and floating in the water. Around the float is a net and another small intertube so we use that to hold his water toys. Obviously we are always in the pool with him, but he can pretty much float safely and play with his toys without us constantly holding him and carrying him around. Even when he leans over in it, it is very stable. We have also used this to teach him how to kick and that he can move around the pool this way.

My son never used floaties of ANY kind for regular pool use (just this summer I have started letting him use a noodle in the pool... he's 4) because I worry about kids THINKING they can swim when they can't. Floaties stop kids from going under, which is a huge part of being in the pool. He was able to swim well by the time he was 2 and I actually credit the lack of floaties for this... he got to get the real feeling of the water and understand what his body was doing.

If it's just a swimming pool, I would just hold him in the water. Help him go under water, float on his back, etc. and enjoy splashing around from the safety of your arms. Get a coast guard approved life jacket for him to wear if you're hanging out around the pool or at the river or something.

My youngest daughter (24 mo) is fearless in water and will jump in without a thought of how she is going to make it out of the pool. We tried all of the options - inflatable baby boat, swim ring, life jacket, etc. She would squirm and buck and generally make going to the pool miserable. I bought a Puddle Jumper vest as just another option in a long line of inflatable stuff and it has been the answer! She can flip onto her back and float and then easily right herself and kick along with her sisters. She is happy to use it and it keeps her safe. I bought mine at a Brookshires, but I have seen them online as well. They are wonderful!

Just fyi, I bought puddle jumpers at Walmart for $15. And, they are really rated for kids 30-50 pounds, so your 21 month old may be a little small yet for it, depending on whether he's big or small for his age. I haven't found any options besides just a regular old lifejacket for kids under 30 lbs.

I use a swim vest that the kids step into and fits right on the front and back of them. You tighten the side up so it fits nicely. You can find this at Target and it is around $20. I like this type for a couple of reasons. First it doesn't float up around their face which some life vest will do and it has removal Styrofoam boards for when they do start swimming. I have taught both of my kids how to swim with this type of swim vest. My youngest learned when he was 3, but we had to relearn this summer again. Please let me know if you have any additional questions.

In Health,
M.

My boys love their puddle jumpers. I bought them at Target. The flotation part is on the front and over the upper arms. It fastens in the back. My kids love that it doesn't ride up on their necks like many of the other kinds do.

I actually agree with Allison. Just stay close. My daughter is two and hated floaties, etc... I just followed her around the pool. Lifejacket or not you are going to have to do that anyhow... it's not like you are going to throw one on and walk away. You said he hates them. Don't just keep buying one after another until you find one he tolerates, or he gives up. My daughter is not afraid of the water and will go straight for the deep end and I have to be on top of her at all times, it is worse with a floaty b/c she thinks she can do whatever she wants and be okay. Sometimes parents get lax and feel more secure with a lifejacket when in fact it is no different. You still have to teach water safety and have four eyes on them at all times. Forget the floaty and teach him how to swim now and save the money on swim lessons later. Just get him out there everyday doing it...swimming. He will learn.
That being said we did buy a floaty for the ocean this summer from onestepahead.com (arm/chest floaty, orange smiley face) and she loves it.

Puddle Jumpers are the way to go! They're Coast guard approved so they can wear them in public swimming pools. My son weighs 40lbs & it holds him up great! He is fearless in the water. I bought mine online. I googled Puddle Jumpers & a Stearns website came up, that's where I bought it.

I used the suit that was a float and life jackets. Either one of those is great. They loved them. Actual floaties they did not like because they had to keep their arms up and they felt very restrained in them.

Good luck and God Bless!!!

Look for a flotation device that is approved by the US Coastguard called a puddle jumper. I recently attended an event on water safety and those were highly recommended.

I think they are called puddle jumpers... LOVE IT! /they keep my 43 pound son above the water better than anything out there. We will never use anything else! I bought his at wal-mart about 2 years ago.... I'm sure they sell them at Target and other places!