One of my kids was too small, (well actually too skinny) for water wings also. What ended up working was one of the life jackets with the crotch strap. I thought it would be too bulky, but she didn't seem to mind. It held her head out of the water, she could paddle about, and my arms got a rest!. By the end of that summer, she was 2 and could swim, but she still got tired quickly, and would actually ask to put on her "mermaid suit" after a while. Also Sam's and Costco sell bathing suits with integrated floats that some of my nephews have worn around age two. Those also seemed to hold their heads up decently.

Stella