First you need to pick out baby names. Then decide what color to paint the nursery. Once all that's done, one of the most daunting tasks for many expectant parents in two-career households is choosing the right day care.

Jennifer Bonutti, 30, a second-grade teacher in Northville, Mich., started doing her homework on day care options a few months before son Evan was born. Many places book up fast and she wasn't sure if she'd need to get on a waiting list somewhere.

Bonutti got recommendations from friends and co-workers. She and her husband, Greg, visited five different places, but none was quite right.

"Some of the environments seemed really sterile. I thought, 'I can't drop my kid off here every day,"' said Bonutti, of Farmington, Mich. "Other places we walked in, got a good sense that this is a good environment, got a good vibe from the people working there."

One key factor for the Bonuttis was the child-to-caregiver ratio. Different states have different laws for the infant-to-caregiver ratio at licensed facilities, but generally it's no more than four infants per caregiver. The ratio goes up as children get older.

After Evan was born, Jennifer Bonutti checked out the local First United Methodist Church center day care, where two of her colleagues at school had their children. The infant room, which costs $252 per week for full-time care, had one adult for every three infants — and she knew she had found the right place.

"You can tell that the people genuinely like being with the kids," she said. "It's a Christian environment and that's important to us too. The kids pray before meals and snack time. In other day care, like public school, you have to be very careful about bringing God into the equation."

Day care choices include: child care centers; group day care homes (in which two or more adults care for up to 12 children); family day care homes (homes where an adult cares for one to six children); and a baby sitter or nanny.

Choosing which is right for you depends a lot on cost and on your specific needs: Center-based care may feel more like a school than home-based care; a nanny in your home may give you more flexibility and lessen your child's exposure to germs from other kids. Having somebody come to your house, however, can cost twice as much as sending your baby to day care.

Many states maintain Web sites where you can check if a facility is licensed; whether it has had any recent complaints filed against it; and whether it has been cited for any violations.

When considering different day cares, be sure to ask how many hours they are open; how much they charge; when payment is due; do they charge for holidays, vacation absences, sick days or late pickups; how many children are cared for; and how many adults supervise them.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends visiting any facility you are considering and observing the interaction there. Do the children look happy? Is the center or home clean and bright? Is the equipment safe and in good working order?

The choices were limited for Kristen van Houten and her husband, Arnoud, because of long waiting lists at some of the top day care centers near their Reston, Va., home.

The van Houtens ultimately decided on KinderCare, a chain of day cares around the country, for their new daughter. It costs $285 per week.

Kristen van Houten had to go back to work about a month before the opening became available at KinderCare, so they bridged the gap with help from her mother and an at-home care center. Baby Elyse started when at 4 months.

"Initially I felt pretty apprehensive about leaving a 4-month-old with strangers in a day care. After visiting facilities and talking with the people, it reassured us," said van Houten. "Going back and seeing she was still happy when we picked her up, gradually the apprehension wore off. She's really social, happy to see her teachers. She gets used to different people, different places."

Often it's harder on the parents than the babies to leave them with someone else.

For Bonutti, who was nursing when her son started day care at five months, figuring out how many bottles to send and making sure the center knew how to handle breast milk was scary, she said. To help with the transition, she spent a couple of days with Evan at the center before she went back to work.

Begin the process early, van Houten said. "Start talking to other parents who have small children in center day care or at-home day care," she said.