I have never been a great swimmer. Sure, I can swim enough to save my life, but hanging out at the pool has never been a favorite past time of mine. After my daughter was born I knew, as a parent, it would be important for her to learn to swim. Those "what if" scenarios always frightened me and as a family where water is a part of most of our hobbies, I knew that sooner or later she would have to learn. I waited and waited until she was suddenly 6 years old. We have been going to the beaches for years together, but she only wished to set her toes in the water, and never cared for the swimming pools. But, by her 6th year, she wanted to try them out.

We bought a pool for the house for her to learn in. Even though it was only 4 feet and her head and shoulders poked through the surface, she still had no confidence and was scared to pick her feet up and float. I had no training and truth be told, I scare too, so I didn't know what to do for her. One of the first things I bought was inflatable floaties for her arms. They worked pretty good, but they still didn't leave her feeling comfortable, and they would always pinch her. While visiting our local Walmart, I came across this product: Stearn's Girls Swim 'N Float and my first impression was "Genius!".

The first Stearn's Swim 'N Float I bought was sleeveless, but since my daughter's shoulders were always above the water surface, she was at the mercy of the sun and got burns often. After the success of that one, I purchased this one, with sleeves. The sleeves cover her shoulders and partial arm and provide up to 45 UPF sun protection.

The way this product is made is really ingenious. It is made of what I believe is neoprene, but it is a really flexible material and is suited to fit girls from 30 to 50 pounds.My child has worn hers for 2 summers now and it still fits great (she fit above 30 lbs and is now below 50 ). It fits just like a bathing suit on your child's body but has a built in flotation device to keep them afloat. The floatation pads are made of foam and are sewn in and come across your child's front (entire chest area) and along their back. The back is zippered and also have a snap enclosure at the nape of the neck (at the back). The bottom is made just like a bathing suit's bottom, although without that extra strip of fabric in there. On the inside of the suit, it is much like a Life Jacket, because it tells you about all the safety precautions and the testing that went into the product. These are US Coast Guard approved and each has a US Coast Guard Approval number stamped on. They've been tested at 50 mph, but still this is meant for a general recreation flotation device (riding IN boats--not behind them on a float--swimming, etc). And, they also have a "created on" date, so you can keep track , easily, of how old the suit is and better judge when you think you should replace it.

While wearing it, my daughter does not submerge in the water. It keeps her afloat much like a life jacket would, although since this is a one piece outfit, she feels more comfortable in this than in a life jacket while in the water.. She has more freedom to move around and do silly twirls and such without having to stand up and keep readjusting it. A life jacket tends to ride up a little on her but this doesn't. Because she is so confident now, and knows nothing can hurt her and she won't go under unwillingly, she relaxed a lot and learned to swim stokes.

My daughter was invited to a birthday party over the summer that year and it was at a community pool. She is young enough where she isn't all that self conscious about what she's wearing, and besides the other kids had floaties on as well (the arm kind), so she wore this. The other parents raved on it, and I could enjoy their company without having to keep constant watch on my daughter because I knew she would be safe. (I could keep one eye on her instead of two!).

This has worked wonders for us. I've always been frightened for her swimming in pools that have a 6 foot section (remember, I cannot swim and I am only 5'4") even though she stuck to the shallow ends. But, now that we use this while in these type of pools (until she learns to swim flawlessly without this device), I don't worry so much because unless someone physically pushes her down in the water, she isn't going under. And, before she was too scared to get into water that was even shallow to her, but now she begs to swim to the deeper ends (while wearing this), so her confidence has went through the roof, and will help her learn better. She is no longer afraid to try to swim underwater or things like that, because of this swimsuit.

Washing this suit is supposed to be done by hand, to keep it in better shape longer. We've used them for 2 summers now and ours still appears brand new. It states on the inside of the suit that fading can indicate a loss of strength, so keep a check on that. (No fading here so far!). And you should store it in your home (and not, say, out in the boat), like any other floatation device because it can get weathered and not be as safe to use. I just pack it away until the next season we can pull it out again.

These also comes in several colors and designs. The one we bought was pink and orange, and the one before was pink with yellow flowers. I'm sure you may be able to find a variety in your area as well. They seem to be seasonal in my local stores, but I have seen them online at all seasons. I bought mine at Walmart but I saw them in Toys R Us as well, and I'm sure Target probably has these as well. They're great for giving you peace of mind, they're comfortable for the kids, and they help them gain confidence in the water as well. I would reccomend them 100 times over (and do to everyone that asks about ours)!