UPPAbaby - Mesa V3

Get a bassinet for the 4-6 months as baby will likely be sleeping next to your bed. Any crib would be fine tbh, I wouldn't recommend a mini crib (we thought babies are small, want do they need that space for). We end moving our kid to a floor bed at 10 months. We did a newborn seat (rear facing) then upgrade to a convertible at 10 months (big baby). Having a newborn seat that is compatible with your stroller is really handy. The stroller was the most important part, my kid is 3 and we still haul it out for trips with lots of walking. We are also in a very walkable area, so your milliage may vary. We got the Uppababy Cruz +Mesa car seat. If you are close to a retail store, definitely go try out a few brands. I'd suggest a convertible seat that is easy to disassemble and wash. We got the Diono Radian 3RXT and it's work to clean.

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 wife and I make good money, and are definitely doing well. That being said, she sometimes falls under the spell of "higher price = higher quality" and needs to get brought down to earth. We bought an expensive Uppababy car seat and it was horrible for our baby. Seriously she had panic attacks at the thought of using it.  Don't be too overwhelmed by the high cost brand recommendations. Some are great, but sometimes hype is just hype. 

So I worked at BuyBuyBaby for 3 years and learned a lot of the different brands and their pros and cons. When we did have my LO I knew I wanted the car seat and stroller to be the most expensive of the items I was going to purchase of everything (and I had already left the store before they closed permanently) because I planned to use them the most. My co worker in the stroller/car seat department gave me all the info on what you should look for in a stroller (foam tires being a big one so it get a tear you can still push it vs ones that have air) and car seat (what safety measures and brands known for good ratings) I also knew that I wanted a car seat that could attach to the stroller without having to deal with adaptors etc so I could just put them in and go from the car. Settled on the uppa baby mesa infant and the uppa baby vista set (so came with the bassinet and toddler seat as part of the package). Was very pricy but three years later I'm still using the toddler seat now and the stroller while I've passed the other items along to friends having babies so I got my monies worth I feel.

Uppababy Mesa V3 car seat fits. We just graduated to the Nuna Rava. It fits too. When going into the seat, watch baby’s head with the Nuna rava. I have it backward facing and reclined to position 1 and still have to be careful. But once little one is seated, clearance is good.

We are getting the Uppababy Cruz 3 stroller with the Mesa V3 seat and adding a bassinet attachment as we go on frequent walks. I like how sturdy it is for our cracked/brick city sidewalks, and we get snow and ice so we like the wheels on it. Goes up to thirty pounds for the car seat and can be installed without a base if need be. I was a little uncertain as it’s pretty pricey system but we already got the bassinet and seat purchased for us from our registry, so it will definitely be it!

If you'll have stuff to usually carry with you then doona isn't a good option, and neither is a convertible seat for infants. I'll suggest a good travel system with infant car seat (bucket seat). Peg perego agio z4 and uppababy vista are great and very comfortable strollers and their car seats are good as well. You can also look at reclining car seats (eg peg perego lounge). You can't recline them in the car but you can in the stroller so they're more comfortable for the baby.

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.

The Uppa Mesa car seat. ( I had to look it up) it works with or without the base so easy to use in an airplane or taxis.

It is super great as long as the stroller fits in your car. The typical Travel System Stroller (can attach the infant car seat) tends to be a bit bigger, so that’s something to be cognizant of. We got the Uppababy Vista with the Mesa infant seat and it has been great. We still use it now with the normal stroller seat (2.5 year old kid). We then got a Graco convertible car seat when our little outgrew the infant seat.