Graco Mirage Stroller

Strollers that come with a carseat/carrier (travel system) cost twice as much as those that don't. Such carseat can only be used for 9 months at most, so we decided to buy a basic stroller, and a carseat, which Baby can use for as long as 4 years, separately. The stroller had to be suitable for a newborn.

I was choosing between Chicco Liteway and Graco Mirage, both selling for around P8,000. I really like the Chicco Liteway. It is light and very compact when folded. This would be very handy for me, especially when I'm not with Husband. I see a lot of parents use one in malls. On the other hand, although Graco strollers are very bulky even when folded, a lot of parents swear by how sturdy it is. The Graco Mirage also looks very comfortable, perfect for a newborn. 

Chicco Liteway

Graco Mirage

Husband decided, and I agreed, to buy the Graco Mirage. One issue he had with the Chicco was that the padding seemed to be inadequate to make a newborn comfortable. Also, his kuya bought a Graco stroller for his daughter and it lasted till she grew up and didn't want to be in a stroller anymore. This reputation seems to be consistent in all the reviews online. I am very happy with our purchase. My SM Mom card came in handy again because I got to use my P500 off coupon. Stocks of this model run out quickly because it is the cheapest Graco stroller with a 5-point safety harness. It was sold out in SM Megamall, Makati and Markina, so we ended up getting ours in SM Masinag. 

I also think buying the Chicco Liteway would have been just as good of a choice. At the P8,000 price range, I think the Graco is the perfect stroller for newborns and small babies, while the Chicco's airy design is suitable for bigger babies who no longer need as much padding as the Graco has. Of course there are other great brands, like Aprica and McLaren, but they cost way beyond our budget. 

Feeding Bottles

Although I intend to breastfeed for as long as I can, I will eventually go back to work and will need feeding bottles for my expressed milk. Filipino moms seem to love Avent bottles. I decided to buy the Natural instead of the Classic bottles, because they supposedly mimic a mother's breast, making the transition from breasfeeding to bottle feeding easier for the baby. The price difference is not substantial anyway. Lazada offers the best deal right now. I bought Avent Natural Feeding 9oz Twin Pack for P650. The same twin pack sells for P1,000 in malls. Lazada runs out of stock pretty quickly though. Right now, they only offer the 4oz version, for P571. 

Because of good feedback from a friend, I got the Pigeon Wide Neck Bottles Starter Kit, which retails for P2,200. I used my SM Mom card coupon to save P200. 

I also bought one Natural Touch Nuby bottle at 40% off from Youji and Me Trinoma. I am hesitant to stack up on Nuby bottles because the brand is not readily available in our area, or in SM malls, and I will eventually need new nipples. 

When I bought my Chicco Electric Steam Sterilizer worth P2,000 from SM, one 4oz Natural Fit bottle worth P500 came with it for free.

I still need to wait for Baby's arrival to find out which brand he likes best. However, the nipples by Avent, Pigeon, and Nuby feel really soft, much like the actual breast.  The one by Chicco is made of harder plastic. All bottles seem to be by good brands and of good quality, with nice reviews online. I have 9 bottles so far, and I hope this will be more than enough for the first few months.