1. Yes, Kate will be in the car a lot, but it's another hour we get to spend together. Can't complain about that, although I will miss my decompression time on the way home...
2. Working ~7min from the daycare gives me a ton of flexibility that I didn't have when we were living in Ashburn. You'll recall the stories about me not making it back by the time the center closed at 6:30, and I can't even describe how stressful a situation that is. Being only a few minutes away means that I can work late if needed without having to gamble on whether I'll make it home on time.
3. That leads into the third upside - there will never be a question that she will be picked up on time. Since Jay and I are both working a good distance from Falls Church, we both have potential traffic issues to contend with on any given day. So those frantic calls from me saying that I'm not going to make it in time - well, maybe Jay won't make it in time either. Having Kate in Rockville completely eliminates this concern; and it's a big one considering that we don't know anyone who lives in Falls Church and could act as a back up pick up option!
4. Because I will be in charge of her in the morning, Jay has no obligation to stick around THUS he can go to work early and somewhat curtail his hours at the end of the day so that we can all be home in the evening together - what a concept!

So, I figure that there will be some days when traffic is just horrendous (it does happen, after all) and Kate and I will simply get off the highway and wait it out. We'll grab dinner somewhere and play, and hop back in the car when things are looking better. It's going to be an adjustment for me to be in charge of her in the mornings again (although I have missed it), and as I've said I think that I'm going to miss my little bit of alone time on the way home.

I can't wait for my commute to be cut in half! This whole driving an hour to Ashburn and then another half hour to South Riding has me ready to pull out my hair at the end of the day. It's going to be interesting to see how it all goes with Kate, but I've bought a tray for her carseat that will allow her to color and snack, and potentially we may get a DVD player to be used on the trip home when we're both a little tired and cranky. We'll see how it goes.

With regards to the daycare, I think it's going to be great. There will be tears for a little while, I suspect, but it's a great place and I have no concerns about the center. At least that's one less thing to stress about!