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I think the question you have to ask yourself is what experience do you want for your child. Will your child be simply babysat or will the baby's emotional, mental and physical needs be met? I went with a daycare where child care providers teach sign language and do lesson plans for each child on top of just keeping him safe.

The 1:4 ratio is not bad at all. Remember, babies sleep alot and there are plenty of people around to help in a daycare center. I do, however agree with the cost being high. But consider a few things in your pro vs con. In a private home, you cannot dictate who enters the home. Daycare centers usually have a security system and they know who is coming and going. You can drop into a daycare center at any time. Will you be able to do so with this private person? Also, ask about vacations and holidays? What if your "at home" provider gets sick? Would you want to or still send the baby to her house? At a center, they have enough people to cover a person who is sick. Also, ask some of your co-workers about their arrangements. You can always hold the spot and continue to look for other options. Something may come up. I wish I could be of more help.

Thank you for your advice--these are definitely things I hadn't considered. I ended up finding a third option, another daycare center that is closer to my job (10 min.), looked a lot cleaner, had separated the infants from the toddlers (in the first facility, they were all lumped together in the same room), was recently renovated with nice carpets, etc. and was cheaper ($123 a week for three days of care). I did ask about dropping in and was told I could drop in whenever and plan on going in on my break to breast feed. The one thing that was not too great is that they still charge you for care even if you don't have the child in that day (e.g., when I'm on vacation or home sick with the baby), which is a bummer. I hope it works out, but at least I know that I can keep my job. Thanks for the advice.