UPPAbaby - Mesa Max

We use the Uppababy Mesa Max carseat and Vista stroller. She's still under 30lbs, so we shall use the carseat for a while longer. We also have a convertible carseat ready (it was a gift from one of my SILs, I think the brand is Britax)

All of this! We bought our travel system (Uppababy Vista V2) on Facebook Marketplace for $350 then just bought the Mesa V2 bucket seat separately. I deep cleaned the stroller and accessories and they looked basically new. Once baby outgrows the bucket seat we’ll buy a convertible car seat, we’re considering the Joie Saffron which is $200 after discounts. In total we’d be about a grand in, but she’d be set until she’s done with car seats. So basically yes, you will have to spend some money, but there are ways to stretch your dollar and still get good products.

We didn't skip the infant (aka bucket) seat BUT we did not have a stroller that it clicked into. My SIL gave me her used bucket seat so we trusted that it was in safe condition, but it's an Uppa Baby and we didn't want to buy the corresponding stroller. Even so, we did still find the bucket seat really handy and i would not recommend skipping. - handy when visiting people. Easier to be able to enter a house and put her on the ground in the seat for a sec while we unload etc. Gave her a moment to adjust as well before being handed off to someone. - handy when in offices and appointments; didn't necessarily have to disturb her by hauling her out when she was comfy/calm or sleeping. - easier to get her buckled in safely inside our home during summer heat and winter cold, rather than trying to do it outside in a parking lot. Just logistically easier to do this in the comfort of your own home, particularly in the early days when we weren't confident about the straps and took a little longer to get it right. Also in winter we knew we could bundle her up well inside our home and then just hustle to the car and click her in. No faffing around. - easier for quick errands like picking up a pizza or the like. Could bring her into a store in the seat, she was calm but got a little change of scenery rather than having to haul her out and then strap her back in. It takes like 5 mins to get a tiny floppy baby out or in, and they don't usually like it. It can get really flustered and reducing that stress is valuable. The bucket seat can be clunky to haul around but you get used to walking with it for the short distances you need to (home to car, car to store, etc). We had a lay-flat stroller (Bumbleride Indie) and I used a carrier alot for our June baby but nonetheless the bucket seat made a world of difference.

Congrats! I’m due in May as well, my second baby. With my first, we got the UppaBaby Cruz stroller which we LOVED and used so much. The stroller is light, compact but has a lot of storage space. And we got the UppaBaby Mesa baby car seat that clicks directly on the stroller. I could not recommend it more. Then for the longer term car seat we got the Graco4Ever which we’re still using for my first (he’s 7yo).

Interesting, the cpsts are always saying how compact it is. We had the mesa but a bigger car. If I could go back in time I would have gotten a smaller, cheaper seat though. 

We love our Vista with Mesa car seat. Whatever you end up going with, I would highly suggest getting an infant car seat that can clip into your stroller. It’s been a lifesaver.

I found the bucket seat way easier. That said, never put either of my infants straight to convertible so maybe it would have been okay and I just never experienced it. I was so scared of “breaking” or hurting my newborn (especially my first - just first time mom things), that I liked to be able to bundle her in the bucket, then move her IN the bucket after. Getting a newborn into a convertible seat would be harder because you’re straining yourself outside the car, trying to get them in place, buckling, it’s cold out, etc. bucket seat you can do that all inside. That said, I’m sure you’ll hear from ppl who used convertible from birth and I’m sure they got by fine. Just as an example - I had the uppa baby bucket seat, with the uppa baby Cruz stroller. The bucket seat clips into the stroller so made outings with a newborn so easy. I did get my stroller used, and car seat new, which offset the higher price of the uppa baby stuff.

I think it’s easiest to start with making a list of your priorities! Convertible car seats (like the rotating ones, as well those that can be used rear facing or forward facing) usually can be used from birth to booster, but it’s important to know if that’s what you want. I personally like the convenience of having an infant seat/carrier that I can remove from its base in the car, because baby falls asleep in the car a LOT and I like to bring him inside without waking him. If you do go the route of an infant seat first, I’d recommend one that is compatible with a travel system because it makes like so much easier. I personally have an UppaBaby car seat/stroller combo and love it, but have heard great things about nearly all of the others too. I think having a bassinet attachment for a stroller is great when baby is small, because it allows them to stretch out and wiggle while you stroll, which is great for them developmentally. It’s not recommended that babies spend extended periods of time in the infant carseat, so I don’t recommend using them for walks if you can avoid it, and the bigger stroller seats aren’t recommended for babies until they have better head and neck control, which also makes the bassinet a winner. If you prefer to skip the infant seat and go to a convertible seat from the jump, that’s fine too! I personally have a rotating car seat for my toddler and plan to use the same one for my infant when he outgrows his infant seat. It makes for less strain on you when buckling the baby in, and is my favorite car seat I’ve ever used. If you go this route, you also don’t have to worry about a stroller that is compatible with an infant seat, which can be a plus if you are looking at some brands that don’t make car seats! I’d write down your must-haves. Decide if you want an infant seat or a convertible seat, and maybe watch some installation videos on YouTube to see if you’re willing to install the seat before you buy it (some are way easier to install than others). From there, decide if your budget is compatible with all or if you need to weed out the ones you don’t want to pay for. And just take it one step at a time! It’s overwhelming but you can’t go wrong, truly. It’s mainly a personal preference situation!

My baby hates being in a car seat outside of a moving car - we have the Uppababy car seat that snaps into the stroller. In hindsight I’m happy I didn’t purchase the Doona since the baby would’ve hated it.

I’d look up complaints about customer service, specifically about recalls or having to replace anything with their products. We were debating between Nuna and Uppababy, and ended up going Uppababy because of the reassurance.