Stearns Original Puddle Jumper Kids Life Jacket | Life Vest for Children

I bought this for my vacation with my 4 1/2 year old son. He's slim, about 3 1/2' tall, and 38 pounds, and this fit him perfectly. It clips in the back very securely, and there is room enough for him to grow into it, but I was never worried he would slip out. The arm holes fit snugly enough so his arms weren't slipping around, but like I said, he is slim, so for a larger child you may have to wet the swimmie first, but I think most arm swimmies are the same way. All in all, I think this would fit most children between 30-50lbs, as it says, unless your child is particularly large around the arms.The puddle jumper let him swim around the pool by himself the entire time (obviously I was still with him in the pool, but he wouldn't let me guide him around, and my son doesn't get much swimming experience at home). His head was above the water, and he could also float on his back if he wanted to. This product really eased my worries about letting go of him, because he could swim around as much as he wanted without dipping underwater at all.Also, since the puddle jumper is a coast guard approved life jacket, we were able to put it on him when we went on a boat ride with my grandfather, and because there was nothing around his neck, he was able to move about the boat more freely than the usual life jackets, and he was also allowed to wear it when we went to the beach (many beaches prohibit "water wings" and other swimmies) and still had plenty of use with his arms and shoulders to build sandcastles.I highly, highly recommend this life jacket. My son was comfortable, I had peace of mind, and it made transitioning to each vacation spot simple and safe!

This Puddle Jumper fit an average-sized three year old perfectly. The color is vibrant and easy to spot in a crowded pool area. I also liked that there was minimum design on the style we ordered. While this isn’t a safety feature, it does help when pairing with patterned swimsuits. This puddle jumper, at times, has been worn for hours and there are rarely any complaints. For home use, we usually just go with cheapo blow up arm bands ONLY if there is an adult in the pool with the child. Arm bands alone can be taken off by the child, though, which doesn’t make them a safe option without REALLY close supervision. With this being said, if there’s a crowd in the pool or if the adults are watching from the deck, we ALWAYS opt for the safer Puddle Jumper. Compared to just using armbands, the Puddle Jumper allows for the user’s head and face to be higher away from the surface of the water. Midsection and arm floats seems doubly safe and more secure! The adjustable back buckle allows for parents to determine the proper fit and puts the buckle safely away from little tykes’ busy hands. For places such as the beach/lake/public pool the Puddle Jumper is the perfect choice! One note that I would like to add is that we also have full life jackets for our toddler to use when riding on our boat. However, I much prefer the Puddle Jumper to the bulkiness of a full life jacket for most uses. Our toddler does as well!

We got this for my 2 1/2 year old son. He is comfortable in the water, but cannot swim on his own yet. Although he was nervous at first when we put him in it in the pool, he quickly learned that he could move on his own without going under the water. It is wonderful! He loves it! He has the freedom and ease of movement to paddle & kick around on his own. We are always right there with him, but it definitely keeps him above water. Even if he jumps in the pool and goes under water - its for only a second because the vest pops him right up out of the water. It definitely makes me less worried about him in the water. We never leave him alone but now he doesn't want us to hold him in the water a lot. He wants to paddle on his own. Sometimes it seems that the arms can be able to slip off a bit. My son is very skinny and sometimes the arm cuff will slip down to over his elbow, but it only happens when he is out of the water and this has very rarely happened. As soon as he gets in the water, the cuff goes exactly where it should. I also love that it is a life vest that he can wear when we go boating at the lake. It allows him to move easily in and out of the water and does not force him face down in the water when he is floating (like some vests can). We are VERY happy with this purchase and will continue to use it and will get one for our daughter when she is older and big enough. WORTH EVERY PENNY!!

I got this for my about 28 pound almost 2 year old. We have an actual life vest with the head flap for when we go kayaking, but it doesn't allow a lot of movement for him, which is probably a good thing when he is in the kayak with me. I wanted something else that allowed him to move around more for more swimming activities. When he first tried it on, he wasn't a huge fan because he couldn't bring his arms together. But to be fair, it was just in our living room so he didn't get the full effect of being able to move in the water.Once we tried it out in the pool - it took a couple of times for him to learn to balance himself with his core and legs, but now he loves it and it allows him to move around much more. I still have to stay very close because he doesn't quite get the idea to NOT shove your face down in the water. But this allows him to learn to kick and turn and just experience swimming better. We also took it to the beach, however it was a beach with minimal waves, but he LOVED being able to run around in the ocean. Each time he gets more experience he gets better and better at being in the water. Highly recommend!