Looking for a Daycare

Every mom knows how hard it is when you have to leave your little one and go back to work.  I have been blessed because I have a full-time student friend that lives with me and has watched my son for the last two years while I work.  Starting in January though, I will need to work full-time while I take a semester off before starting grad school.  My friend will not probably not be available all the time so I'm starting to think about childcare options. 
I'm pretty picky, like most moms, when it comes to a babysitter or daycare.  In a perfect world I would be able to be a full-time mom and have a fulfilling and high-earning job I could do from home but that just isn't reality.  So I must think about my options.  The first option for most people is a family member or friend to watch the baby.  I don't have any family in the area except my mom who lives an hour and a half away.  Most of my friends either have their hands full with their own children or work themselves.  So that is not going to work.
So I'm down to two choices.  Either an in home daycare or a child care center.  They both have their pros and cons.  The good thing about an in home daycare is they are often more flexible with hours.  Being a nurse that would be beneficial for me.  Also, some people feel children get more one on one care in a home and that the environment is more comfortable and nurturing.  The bad thing is that licensing is often not as strict for homes, providers may not have early childhood education, and you really don't know what happens when your not there. Unless I knew the provider well I would worry about abuse or neglect because no one is monitoring what the provider does. 
I think a center is the best option for us.   The bad thing about a center is that there are so many children and each adult is responsible for more children.  It is also not as comfortable as a home.  The positives are that they are well regulated, offer age-appropriate activities, you don't have to worry about your child sitting in front of the tv all day, and you don't have to worry about what to do when the provider is sick. 
The most important part of child care is that the child is happy and well taken care of.  If your kid hates going to daycare then there might be a problem.  It's really important to check out references.  Contact information for the state can be found here to check the background of a center.  A child care center will meet our needs best but a home might be best for someone else.  Every family has to consider what is most suitable to their own needs.