My daughter and I toured 9 colleges together. Here's what I learned about her from the experience.

• Last year, my daughter and I took several trips to tour nine colleges.
• At first, she was shy and awkward on the tours, but I watched as she came out of her shell.
• In between tours, we had fun and bonded, which was important before she goes off to college.

When our daughter was born in 2006, the last thing on my mind was the summer before her senior year of high school, during which, it turned out, we'd spend crazy, busy days traveling up and down the West Coast from our home outside Seattle to visit colleges.