I have a 28.5 month old son, who's barely 26lbs and about 32 inches ( I think). He's on the smaller side, whenever we're out an about he sizes up with about a 20/21 month old....with that said I am having a difficult time finding a lifevest that he will keep on and fits him. He hates the infant lifevest because they automatically flip him to his back if he just wants to float. I've tried the swimsuits with the floaty things inside of them, and a regular children's lifejacket, and we have two problems with those. First it seems they ride right up to his lips, and the second is they seem sooo bulky, which makes him horribly frustrated that he can't bend over= constantly crying" off off off". I am at a lost, last summer I bought a " puddle jumper life jacket", and it took care of the riding up portion and the flipping to the back, and even the bending over....BUT his arms are so tiny they keep sliding out, and the arm pads fill up his whole arms, so it looks like he's a walking scare crow :) And I got the same result...Mommy off, Mommy off when out of the pool. I think in a few yrs this will be a great fit for him, but I don't know what to do in the mean time? We have a pool, fully fenced in, but I want to swim this summer so bad. He only lasts about 10 minutes and he's in and out playing around the pool...I would like to find something that works for him in or out of the pool.. Our pool rules have always been once your inside the gate kids who can't swim have to have a floatation device on at all times. Typing this I guess the only thing I haven't tried were arm floaties I guess it never crossed my mind as being a practical safety measure for my lil guy???
The only vest I saw that appears that might work was the Speedo toddler vest I saw at Target. It's a little big on him and he doesn't quite fit the weight range, but has anyone try that vest out and like it? I also found one online by Full throttle, its called the Child Rapid Dry Sport Vest....but its like $45 and I think its only online, I don't want to order and end up the same problems...Does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts on what might work? I'd like to have be safe and have fun with him around the pool this summer...
I needed something better than what I saw at Target. Sports Authority was where there was the best selection for very small sizes.
Our absolute favs are Texas Rec vinyl jackets. (The same kind disneyland uses). In order to fit properly, they are SKIN TIGHT.
The super smooth material almost bonds to the skin when wet, but because of what it's made out of doesn't rub/chafe/etc. And it keeps you warm to boot. The arms are totally free for moving, as it's a tank top type. My son kept wearing his that was too small (so he'd match colors with his best friend who weighs 30lbs less than he does) for over a year... with a 3 inch gap across the chest. The child's small will keep a 6' tall 200lb adult afloat as well (as tested by us)... so he had no problem staying afloat with his too small vest. So these last for years and years... which is fantastic.
You can get them here (at the company's site) or for 10 buck more get a 2-pack from amazon. But amazon has random sizes and colors, so it's hit or miss whether or not they have the size and color you want.
http://www.125west.com/p-5175-super-soft-child-life-vest....
I got a life vest and ultimately returned it because it was not comfortable on my daughter. I got a $20 suit with built in foam pads from Wal-Mart for my daughter last summer when she was about your son's size and she LOVED it!!! She was 'swimming' by herself all over the pool all summer. It took about five minutes for her to realize that when it starts to tip her forward or back that she just needed to right herself (nothing as extreme as the life vest though). I bought her a larger size one last summer when they went on sale and am excited to see her in the pool again this year!
Last year our kids were 2 and 3 and we found their vests at Sports Authority. Awesome! Has the strap that goes under the crotch. Fits them both perfect! I would recommend going there.
If you are with him whenever he goes in the pool, I really recommend floaties for the pool. My daughter had the same problem with life vests, and floaties (in the pool) were the answer. They allow freedom of movement necessary to learn how to swim and stay above water. Our daughter does great with them! We also go to the lake a lot in the summer (where my parents have a cabin with a dock and boats), and there a life jacket is required for riding in boats. She wears it then, because we make her, but when we're swimming together around the dock I still stick to floaties because she can swim so much better with them. Once she's bigger she'll graduate from floaties to a life vest full time in the lake, but she's just not big enough yet (she's 2.5, and VERY tall for her age, but pretty slender--the life jacket last summer when she was 20 mos fit but was long). Good luck!
J.
If you have a marine store in your area go there. They have vests for all ages. The things to look for are of course fit, a head rest with handle, and a strap that goes between the legs and locks. We use Mustang Lil Legends for our kids on our boat. They are sized by weight. It is also bright yellow, so easy to spot. A Big plus if you are under sail. You can get these at West Marine.
If you are ONLY going to use the vest for the pool, you could find a vest (perhaps a ski vest) that is a style you like and perhaps rides up a little and alter it with installing your own cratch strap to make it sit where you want on him in the pool. You might even bea able to take in the sides a little. Any alterations to a life vest make it no longer Coast Guard Approved and inappropriate for boating.
We went through the same thing summer before last. Then last summer we got a Stearns neoprene jacket (I think at target). It has the headreast in back with a handle, zips up the side and straps under the legs. We figured there was no way our son would tolerate it, but we had to find something. Much to our surprise, it did not phase him a bit. Maybe it was because he was older? Anyhow, the vest we got is labled "Infant" for size, but goes up to 30 pounds (our guy is on the smaller side, too, so I understand where you're coming from). I'll keep my fingerrs crossed for you that perhaps now that your son is older (and you can explain why he needs to wear it and/or that he can't be in/near the water without it) that it will go smoother for you this year. But I can't say enough good about that life jacket and I've saved it for our next one.
You know, my husband and I spent plenty of cash & time trying to find a good lifevest for our little ones. What we really found were the best were the old-fashioned orange vests that go around the neck & down the front. These made sure that the baby/kid's face stayed out of the water, where the fancier ones we tried held them a little more upright & the baby could lean over, face first, into the water.
