Hellobee Boards

We used this:

http://www.babycenter.com/0_home-daycare-provider-interview-sheet_1452147.bc

LO is almost two and he loves daycare and does so well there. I know it's hard not to feel guilt, but if you find a center you really like (and you totally will- you live in an area with tons of options), it will be great for her.
I think a lot of the usefulness of daycare visits is in the intangibles. Our daycare isn't the nicest facility we visited, but the kids were just really happy there. Every time I visited (and I visited a total of three times, once alone, once w/ DH and once with my mom), the atmosphere felt calm, the kids seemed happy and occupied, etc. Whereas another very highly regarded daycare in our area just felt hectic to me when I visited. I also really like LO's particular teacher, and I really like the Assistant Director (who has more of a hands-on admin role than the actual director, who does a lot of paperwork and fundraising and the like).
One thing that I like at LO's current daycare is that there is a lot of interaction between the different ages. That wasn't the case at other centers I visited, where kids were basically in the same single room all day long with the same kids. Our daycare has certain times of the day where kids are in their designated rooms doing activities, but at other times all of the doors are open and kids kind of migrate around the rooms (each of which has different stuff- there's a sand table in one room, a train table in another, etc.). Outside time was also really important to me- our daycare takes them out twice a day if possible.
If you go around drop off or pickup time, don't be afraid to ask other parents why they chose the center- I had a really nice chat with one lady that also helped to make up my mind. I really love the other parents at my daycare, and that was helpful- I feel like we all have pretty similar goals and values for our kids, so it feels like a good group to be in when it comes to working with the school on policies, and I enjoy hanging out with them, which is nice now that I have a child who wants to do playdates and birthday parties.