what type of floation devices do you use in the pool

Our twins will be close to 2.5 when we take a winter vacation in CO and were are staying in a lodge with an indoor and outdoor pool. My mom is coming to watch the kids so DH and I can ski and have some alone time but I know we're giong to need some type of floation device so my mom can be in the pool with both kids since she won't be able to hold them both (although she will be in the water with them the entire time)....

I was looking at this at One Step Ahead:
http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=1366

But wanted to know what you all experienced mom's have or do use

Thanks a million,

 

May I suggest that you take more than one type if you can - and then if the kids get bored of the one they'll still be safe. We live by a beach and currently use regular blow up arm-bands as well as 'swimming noodles' which we have held the ends together with a plastic ring (to create a loop they can sit in). We call it the girls' car as they hold on to the ring as if it were a steering wheel - love it.

Before about 2 1/2 the girls couldn't use the arm bands and had something similar to what you've picked out. I think the loop would still have worked at that age, but as it's possible to fall through the middle I wouldn't take my eyes off them.

 

We use something similar to this for our boys, in our pool or when we go to the river or lake:

http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=74&parentCategoryId=100180&categoryId=100182&subCategoryId=105179

I will be honest and say that they don't last long for us. The boys tire of them quickly. They want to "swim" themselves and after about 15 minutes in these little boats they are yelling to get out.

 

We have 3 of what you are looking at and all 3 (3.5 and 19 months) kids love them and it gives them so much confidence in the water. I highly recommend them.

 

I don't use anything, but where are you going in CO?

You could get those little life jackets, too!

Have fun!

 

I would NOT suggest that one. They don't give enough floatation to bring a toddler's head above water and are only for a kid who can swim with help. Trent went under in his and didn't come back up and I haven't used them since. He weighed maybe 20 pounds at the time so hardly exceeding the limits (not to mention these were creeping up their butts when they were 36" tall and are unwearable at 40"). There are floatie suits with foam that work better or you could get something like the Puddle Jumper life jacket. My kids LOVE those and their heads absolutely stay above water in them (unless they jump in from the side and even then they pop right up). I can't say enough good things about the Puddle Jumper and at Wal-Mart, they're very reasonably priced.

 

Oooh, those Puddle Jumpers look great. We need to get them each one before we go on vacation. They got regular life jackets for their birthday, but they are the type that tend to tip them backwards to lay them on their back so they hate wearing them in the water for play.

 

We have been using puddle jumpers for our girls as well. They are good, they keep their heads above water, no problems. They girls like wearing them. They want to stay in the pool even when its time to leave, because they are having so much fun.

 

Since the girls were 2.5 we've used life jackets. I suggest the speedo brand because the ones that have nylon straps can cause rub burns on their groin

 

The life jackets that our friends had for us to use at the lakehouse this 4th of July were great! They were like the ones for boating. My kids are still well within the infant weight range so the jackets would not let their heads go under. If we let go of them they immediately would roll to their backs and float. If you want them to actually play, a full life jacket would be difficult for that reason alone.
That puddle jumper, looks like something we need for our pool. I doubt they make them small enough for. Maybe for next year though. I just looked at Stearns site and it has a 30-50 lb weight range. HTH

 

Oh, dang. Yeah, the Puddle Jumpers will be way too big for our boys then. They are only 23 and 25 pounds.

 

We always just use life jackets and then little floaties around their waste. I like the puddle jumpers, though, and haven't ever seen those before.

 

I agree 100%~!!!!! I can't say enough great things about the puddler jumpers. They are cute, so the kids WANT to wear them. They hold them upright at all times, but are still manuverable enough that a kid can lean forward to make swimming motions on his tummy, but still keep the chin out of the water. After using them since July 4th, mine can paddle and kick their way across the pool without our help at all, and they can easily and confortably float on their own. I can't rave enough about them!!! I found mine at walmar for $15 a piece which was about half price, but they are probably sold out now, but if I would have ordered them online and paid full price + shipping I would still be thrilled with the purchase! They are US Coast Guard rated, so they are safe for boating as well.

Now, I'll go out on a limb and say that they might be ok for your boys. A lot of folks on the amazon site said that they have used them with no problems with their 2 year olds that are under the weight limit. My DD is about 28 lbs and she has no problems with hers at all. As long as you can get the buckle tight around the chest, I think it would be okay. If you could find one in the store, you could try it on first...

 

I'm pretty sure the weight range is for wearing them as life jackets while boating. They have to be snug enough to not come off if a child is thrown from a moving boat to pass muster with the coast guard. The higher range also means that people (hopefully) won't put an infant in one when they aren't yet able to position themselves face-up without help. For swimming, I absolutely would have used the PJ last year if I'd known about it and my kids just hit 30 pounds here recently.

 

I am kind of late coming in this topic but the puddle jumpers look wonderful. Do they keep they children afloat with out them moving at all? My girls love to get in the pool at my mom's but they get bored of us holding them. They also move and tip over to much for the little rings things that they have to sit in.

 

They are wonderful, and yep, they keep them afloat if they are just hanging there or if they are kicking and moving around. We have yet to have any problems with tipping over. The part that goes around the chest keeps them upright and the parts that go around their arms keeps them from tipping over. But because there is not foam where the pieces connect under the armpits, the child can still easily move his arms. We used to use just those waterwing-arm floaty things and they just hung there by their arms which constricted their movement. These don't really do that.

I swear, I need to go into the ad business for these things!! :lol: I just think they are fantastic!!

 

Thank you SO SO SO much for all the replies! Im going to check out those puddle jumpers they sounds GREAT!

Thanks again ladies, you all are the best

 

We just went to the beach, and I had both Puddle Jumpers AND the Speedo life vests. We had used the Speedo vests once before, and they were okay but not great, so I got the Puddle Jumpers based on advice I read here.

And, wouldn't you know? Karina hated it, and pitched a fit and wouldn't keep it on -- she kept pulling her arms out. I can see how they work better, though. However, we ended up just using the Speedo life vests, and we put the kids in some regular floaties in the pool, and it worked out fine.

Here is how the Speedo vest fits, the 30-50 pound size:

Karina in vest

(She's about 35 pounds, and 39 inches)

 

Just an FYI on floatation devices...

We took our girls to the beach today with these...
http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=534595&parentCategoryId=100180&categoryId=100182&subCategoryId=105179

and we were told we couldn't use them by the life guards because they weren't coast guard approved. I think the only thing that is approved are life vests.

 

Actually Puddle Jumpers ARE coast guard approved.

 

We used Puddle Jumpers this summer and my kids love them. They dont want to be anywhere near me when they have them on. They were awesome!!!!

 

We dont and havent used any flotation devices except for the little boats when they were little. They are just in the middle of ISR lessons and love them. They dont recommend using any flotation devices at all since it gives kids a false sense of security around the water. I tend to agree with that thought. JMO though. ardon:

 

Mine use arm floaties most of the time, although my twin girl now uses a back float. We have this one: http://www.thatcuteage.com/5-Play-Learn/c89p1-Swimming/p635-Zoggs-Back-Float. It's quite popular here because it keeps their arms and legs free to learn how to swim. Not sure they have it in the States. My boy can't use it yet, he keeps turning over so he still has the arm bands which work for him. He can kick his legs, on his tummy and back and even starts making circle arms. We go to the pool once or twice a day, and the love it. My twin girl is now starting to swim by herself for a couple of feet. She floats really well. My oldest is also fine by herself. I would not recommend anything that would keep them from actively doing something ... whether it's arms, legs or both at the same time ...

 

Another huge thumbs up for the Puddle Jumpers - we are on vacation now with a pool and I could safely supervise 3 not yet swimmers by myself. They love the independence!

 

The Puddle Jumper looks awesome. I will definitely have to get those for my kids. I guess you could say I kind of created my own this summer for the twins. I put the arm floats on them, and put them in a ring float. lol. So, they were pretty safe, and were able to kick their feet to get around the pool, but their arms were pretty restricted. I will definitely be looking for the Puddle Jumpers next summer.