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Following, because we're going to visit a school/daycare soon and I don't have a long list of options, it's kind of yes or no.

@daniellemybelle: I'm sorry about your mom breaking her legs! Hope her recovery is smooth!

Sorry about your mom. I've been desperate for daycare too and we worked through some less than ideal situations.

At a small licensed (I assume) daycare I would ask how they handle employee breaks during the day and who covers when a teacher is out ill or on vacation. Do they have trained backup?

One question I told myself to add to my list is do any of the caregivers smoke or what's the smoking policy? I haven't actually asked that one yet. I decided not to let a friend watch LO because of frequent smoke breaks (& second hand smoke) but I never asked daycare.

For in home I always ask about who has access to the kids. I left one daycare because every day there were extra people hanging out at the house and I didn't like not knowing who was around LO. Depending on the church daycare setup that might still apply if there's an active church community on the same grounds.

Good luck with your search.

For me, it's gut feeling, has been at every single place we've looked at. So many places look great on paper, but I just "know" when I walk in if I feel comfortable with the place or not. Cleanliness is huge for me, as well as the state of the place, is it maintained, or are the fixtures in need of a facelift.

I also want to see a place that has the front door locked and doesn't let random people wander in all over the place. They should have a sign in and sign out protocol as well.

One thing I always ask is what is the policy with personal cell phones, are they allowed in the classroom? I also asked about language that's spoken, there was a slight issue at our first center, where the main teachers spoke to each other in Spanish. I have no issue with Spanish being part of the cirriculum (it's great to hear my son say his colors and numbers in Spanish), but I needed him to also hear English.

PS: Speedy recovery to your mom!

OMG your mom! What a horrible thing

Honestly for only two days a week, not a lot is a dealbreaker. E goes to a sort of...meh....sitter on Fridays. For one or two days a week, I'm ok with it. I wouldn't want her full time. So if the kids seem well cared for and its been recommended, and nothing jumps out at you or you get a bad feeling, I'd roll with it. More than likely, they'll inundate you with info on a tour

In the case of 2 days for a couple months, I would be pretty lenient. As long as it was safe and clean and I had a good feeling in there, I would probably go with it. I would go off of my gut feeling, if I have a good feeling then I say go for it, it's so temporary I wouldn't be too picky.