Graco - SnugRide SnugFit 35 DLX

My diaper bag came from Amazon. Some non-brand. I’ve seen it on just about every mom at the zoo, so it’s quite popular. I think it was ~$25. My bucket car seat is the Graco snugride snug fit 35 dlx. Using it on my second kid now with no complaints. It will also fit into the attachment on Graco strollers. I think it was around $130. My convertible car seat that they switch into when I get tired of carrying them in the bucket seat is the Graco slim fit 3in1. It was just under $200. My stroller for my first baby was the Graco modes pramette stroller. I think it was around $200 but it was a gift so not sure. Now that we have our second baby we have a Graco ready2grow Lx 2.0. It was on clearance for $170. Bucket car seat will also fit into it like the single stroller. As you can tell, we are loyal to Graco baby stuff.

I love my Graco SnugFit 35. You can snap it in and out of the car and carry the baby in it. Very helpful for appointments. Also affordable. It’s actually like $109 on Amazon right now and it’s usually $160.

I have decided to get the Graco SnugRide Snugfit 35 DLX infant seat. I have not chosen a specific stroller yet, but I plan on getting a 3 wheeled one as I heard they are easier to maneuver. I decided on the car seat for these reasons: it is compatible with any Graco stroller. I wanted to get an infant seat since I'm due near winter and want to be able to easily just take the seat in/out vs having to strap baby in in the cold. I also wanted to lightest seat available, this one is only 9 pounds I believe vs most I looked at were 12-15pounds. It's got a good safety rating and it's not too expensive for my budget. Oh and I decided on Graco brand because they overall have a good safety rating and quality products, and it was too overwhelming trying to decide on cars eats without picking a brand first I plan on upgrading to a convertible once baby grows out of the infant seat so giving myself more time to research that

I'm a teacher too! We got the Graco Snugride Snugfit 35 DXL for an infant seat (~$160)--I liked the rebound bar on the base. The actual car seat was super easy to get in & out of our cars (a Subaru Forester & Crosstrek) & wasn't too heavy. I got the Baby Jogger City Mini GT2 stroller with adapters for the Graco infant seat (I picked a color combo that was on clearance). Honestly, it's easy enough to maneuver, but it's big & the storage area is laughably small & difficult to get anything in & out of. Surprisingly, my friend who got an Uppa Vista 2 (second hand), recommended the **Baby Trend Expedition**. Her friend had one & she said it was easier to use than the Vista 2, worked better moving from cement to grass, and had a bigger canopy. (I almost got this one, but they only work with their own infant seats, and I didn't like their harness latch.) Now we have the Graco 4 in 1--whichever version is sold at Costco. No complaints. I can also testify that it's easy to disassemble & clean barf out of 🤢

Yes, I love having carseat compatibility with my stroller! We have the Graco snug ride snug fit DLX with the Graco Fastaction Jogger, we've used this with both kids and I love the ease it folds up, and the "real" tires which helps on all terrain. We also have the Cyber Gazelle with Graco adapter, because we have 2 under 2 and sometimes need the double stroller option. This stroller is so smooth and turns really easily even with one hand but is not so great in loose rocks or dirt. It really isn't a big deal to pop the carseat in to the stroller at home or get baby ready in the carseat and then take him out to the garage to pop it in when we go for walks. I like it because he then faces me, plus most strollers are not recommended until at least 6 months of age on their own so you either need to use a carseat or one with a bassinet attachment.

So, in a Hyundai Kona you're going to need a very compact seat. We have a Mazda CX-30 which is a similar sort of situation and only had a few options. Even then, the front passenger seat is not useable if you're over 5'5". We have a Graco Snugride bucket seat. I believe the Graco Extend 2 Fit is the most compact front-to-back so I'd probably recommend that for a convertible. I have never put a newborn in one though.  One thing to consider with a December baby and no bucket seat is that it's a lot more unpleasant to get them buckled up and such from outside the car vs. doing it inside and then just clicking the car seat into the base. Unless you have a midwife or your GP is walking distance, you'll be trekking your newborn to the doctor at least 3-4 times in the first 8 weeks in the absolute dead of winter, and that doesn't account for any other driving you might have to do. 

I had a January baby in New England!  I went back and forth depending on my preference, the surface, and how cold it was.  We used a graco stroller and car seat combo a lot, with the baby in a fleece jacket and tucked into a blanket.  We also got a fleecy bunting thing that could go in the stroller seat (not the car seat), and if it was frigid I would put her in the baby carrier and zip my coat around us both.  We had her in a hat all the time.  I loved our walks.  I would flip flop the car seat attachment for the stroller seat pretty easily, so I kept both in the car and would just use whatever I felt like at the time.  Takes up the whole trunk lol but otherwise this worked well for us.   I’m pregnant and due in January again lol and the only thing I might change is to get the bassinet for walks, as i think it would be nice for napping. I would do fleece plus bunting or blankets again with that.

I wanted Greico since they are super reliable and more budget friendly than premium brands. I found a car seat I really loved and it turns out it came in a seat/stroller combo. The strolled didn’t matter too much to me but it has been great for walks and is easy to fold. It’s a little tricky getting the seat to snap in but after a few tries, it’s no biggy. Definitely happy with my Greico!

I think you’re just having weird luck. Majority of parents are certainly not rich in many countries. We got a graco stroller + car seat combo for $350 from Walmart. Worked plenty fine. Got a second hand halo bassinet for $70 from a friend of a friend. I got a baby bjorn carrier for $20 on marketplace, a used wipeable changing pad for $10 on marketplace, and I gave a friend $100 for her medela breast pump she used once (she paid a lot more for it). I took hand me down clothes from friends and coworkers and have probably bought my son a handful of clothing items in 15 months. Graco pack and play - $100. As far as feeding stuff - ikea simple high chair $25, although I got a used graco high chair on marketplace that was ugly as crap but it worked great for $60, and I buy bowls, plates, utensils and cups from Amazon or Walmart. We warmed our bottles in hot water rather than buying a bottle warmer. I have a skip hop sound machine from indigo/chapters - it was $45. Crib was brand new for $200 (my choice), dresser was used from a family member and free, and we upgraded to a mattress on the floor when my son turned one which I bought for $75. The only thing I had to spend money on to buy brand new was sleep sacks and bottles. I have also had luck with used stuff at thrift stores. I got a snow suit for my son for $20 and used winter boots for $20. For baby number two, we’re keeping all the same stuff. I may buy new bottles or at least nipples. I probably will need a new breast pump or replace the parts. Baby is a girl and my first is a boy, but she will be in his swaddles and sleep sacks, she will be in majority of hand me down clothes from her brother or her cousins.

That’s nowhere near Bart either. Buy a $120 Graco snug ride and take an uber or a cab.

Yeah, we paired a Graco with a Mockingbird, and we have no issues.

Keep in mind you really might not use the infant seat for very long. My baby boy was 16 lbs at 4 months and it just got too heavy to carry inside. I ended up switching him to a convertible because he’s much more comfy in it and it’s easier to put him in/take him out. I personally hold not splurge on an infant car seat, my graco was absolutely perfect

Have an infant car seat (graco) and an evenflo giant car seat that I call the captains chair in my cx5. It’s tight but both my husband and I are under 6 feet tall so it works for us. You can’t recline well and you can’t put the front seats back too far. We had the car before the babies though so we make it work.

Stroller I have the Mockingbird Single to Double. It’s a single stroller that can be changed to a double stroller with an attachment. It also has a car seat adapter for tons of infant car seats. We’ve had ours for 4 years and we love it. It’s super durable, folds up easy, and is easy to pop out and open. It also has TONS of storage. For a car seat we did the Graco infant seat and when they grow out of that we change to a convertible seat that adjusts to fit all of their needs until they don’t need a car seat/booster anymore.

In my opinion, it’s absolutely not necessary. I had a graco infant seat and I borrowed the clock connect stroller piece that my sister wasn’t using anymore, but my baby outgrew that car seat by 5 months old. She has the evenflo revolve 360 extend car seat now, which I love because rotating the seat makes it super easy to get her in and out (especially when she’s asleep) and it’s safe for use all the way from newborn to booster seat with rear facing up to 50lbs. As far as strollers, once we were done with the Graco car seat I bought an umbrella stroller from Walmart for $30. That ended up getting moldy while were were living in a camper for a few months so I tossed it and I’ve realized I actually don’t really NEED a stroller anymore. She’s a year and a half old, almost, and I usually either carry her or hold her hand while she walks.

We're due in a couple weeks there's snow on the ground - so we got an infant car seat for about $200 CAD (Graco) when it was on sale. Just check if there's adapters for the stroller if you drive everywhere and don't plan on grocery delivery. Infant car seats still have a 2hr window for baby