Claire started when she was 12 months old. She goes 3 days a week - mon, tues and wed. We use family day care. I went a few times and stayed an hour or two with her and we played together and with the other kids there, jst so that she could get used to it while I was there too. Our carer said that Claire has always been quite happy when I am not there. She still usually gets grumpy when I leave, but she is happy by the time I am walking out the gate. She has lots of fun, she is happy when we pick her up, she eats and sleeps well. I did feel guilty for the first few weeks and sometimes I still do feel bad about leaving her there. But I think its good for her - she has the chance to play with other kids which she doesnt really have at home.
The thing that was really hard at the beginning though was trying to get DH to help me. We use FDC and are required to provide food and nappies for her. Due to my stupid work and our FDC lady being on jury duty directly before Claire started, she only had one week of going to FDC before I went back to work, which meant things were really rushed. Being back at work, I was super tired and was falling asleep at like 7pm. I'd ask DH if he couild pack Claires bag and lunchbox for the next day and he'd say OK. I'd wake up later and find he hadnt because he "didnt know what she needed" (he lacks initiative and is lazy) which meant I was wasting time in the morning (and dropping off Claire late and getting to work late) because I was having to do it all at the last minute. So make sure you involve your DH so he knows whats going on and what has to happen and how to help you out too.