Transportation Gear Deep Dive

Infant carseat
Recommended: Nuna Pipa Lite RX
Other good options: Clek Liing (in Mammoth or Twilight/Full Moon only)*
Most infant carseats are doused in flame retardant chemicals, which have been shown to cause hormone disruption, neurological damage, and cancer (this guide sums up the dangers well). All car seats have to pass flame resistance testing, but this can be accomplished using natural materials like wool. When we had Miss F, we were less aware of the dangers of flame retardants and used a traditional carseat—the Chicco Keyfit. It gets outstanding crash safety ratings and we were very happy with it, but we swapped it for the Nuna Pipa Lite R, the less expensive version of the RX, when we had Miss E.
Of the natural options available, the Clek Liing (in specific fabrics—the Mammoth or Twilight/Full Moon) gets the best ratings on Consumer Reports (actually, it gets the best safety rating out of all infant car seats). Consumer Reports conducts extensive testing on crash safety, ease-of-use, and fit-to-vehicle, so a CR stamp of approval is important. However, we liked the Nuna car seats’ light weight and the compatibility with strollers, and they received just as high ratings on crash safety. All of the Nuna Pipa/Pipa Lite options are great choices; we personally chose the “R” because we liked the newer “RELX” style of base. While I would have loved the upgraded “RX” version, particularly because it can be used without a base, the additional cost wasn’t worth the extra features for us.
If you would like to review other car seats, The Gentle Nursery has an outstanding, well-researched blog about all carseats without flame retardants and PFAS. I also recommend spending $10 to subscribe to Consumer Reports for a month to review their safety testing scores. One final note—car seats without flame retardants tend to be significantly more expensive than traditional seats. If you can’t use them, that’s ok! Just try to limit your infant’s time in their seat (which you should do anyway) and make sure they’re always clothed when in it. If you have to choose between chemical safety (i.e. no flame retardants) and crash safety, I personally would prioritize crash safety.

Everyday stroller
Recommended: Uppababy Vista V2
Other good options: BabyJogger City Select, Mockingbird
We prioritized getting a stroller that could hold an infant car seat as well as easily convert to a double stroller. We love and still use the Uppababy Vista, although it is a very expensive option. The BabyJogger City Select and Mockingbird both have similar features at a much more reasonable price point. They do feel a little less sturdy or “cheaper” than the Uppababy but in my opinion, the Uppababy’s upgrades don’t match the price difference. Both Uppababy and BabyJogger are committed to not treating their strollers with nasty chemicals (including flame retardants), although some less than ideal ones like waterproofing still sneak in. While Mockingbird claims its fabric is tested and free from harmful substances such as lead and phthalates, I could not find any further information on its chemical treatments, so I assume that some are used.
Make sure that your selected stroller will be compatible with your infant car seat (for example, the Mockingbird is not compatible with Clek car seats). If you’re interested in other non-toxic options, The Gentle Nursery also has a great list of strollers as well.

Jogging stroller
Recommended: BOB Revolution Flex 3.0
If you are a runner or plan on using your stroller on trails, the BOB is a must! It is an expensive upfront purchase but has excellent resale value. We use ours nearly daily and Miss F actually prefers it over the Uppababy Vista. We now have the double BOB for both girls, and we also love it. As an added bonus, BOBs are also a non-toxic option. You can often find gently used BOBs for sale for great prices (although keep in mind they do resell well, so in the long run it might not be much more expensive to get a new one). Another great way to save money would be to skip the everyday stroller and only get a BOB; you can purchase an infant car seat adaptor for quite a few types of seats so you can use it from birth (of course always follow your pediatrician’s recommendations for stroller use).
One final note about the BOB—its safety was questioned a few years ago after there were several cases of the strollers flipping over while being pushed during runs. Of course this is horrific and could lead to serious injuries or even death. However, the investigations found that the flipping occurred because the parents had not locked the front wheel—a critical safety feature. After reading these reports, we are always careful to lock the wheel when running. While three-wheel strollers, i.e. most running strollers, do inherently pose a slightly increased risk, we are comfortable with using the BOB with the proper precautions taken.

Wrap carrier
Recommended: Organic Boba Wrap
Other good options: Organic Baby K’tan Baby Wrap
Wrap carriers are wonderful for small infants and can allow you to not be quite as tied to your couch in the early days (although resting is super important—so don’t push it too much!). Miss F loved her Boba wrap and I often wore her for walks before she was big enough for the stroller, or while I was doing a few chores. There are a LOT of wraps available on the market, and I don’t think one is the best—it is all personal preference. Tying the Boba does take some practice, and an easier option is the Organic Baby K’tan. The Gentle Nursery has a great guide to non-toxic baby carriers that you can find here, if you’d like to consider other brands. An advantage of the Boba-style wraps is that they can fit any size of adult, so both mom and dad can use the same one; styles like the K’tan are harder to adjust once they are set, so you’d need to buy two if you wanted both parents to baby-wear.

Structured carrier
Recommended: Baby Bjorn Baby Carrier One*
Other good options: LILLEbaby Complete Organi-Touch 6-in-1 Ergonomic Baby Carrier
Structured carriers are great once your little one starts getting a little bigger. Most allow the child to face toward the parent (better when they’re smaller for hip development), or outwards. We have the Ergobaby Omni 360 and were very happy with it, but we have later learned that more natural options are available. We primarily used it to run errands and for hiking (when Miss F was too little for a hiking backpack). We have close friends who have loved their Baby Bjorn, which is a great non-toxic option. I also have heard other moms give the LILLEbaby good reviews.