Playing Catch Up: Go Hawkeyes

After a college applications process that felt more like a nauseating rollercoaster ride than an effort to gain access to an institute of higher learning, Will decided to attend the University of Iowa to study biomedical engineering. 

While Tom and I didn't push Will toward the University of Iowa, when he made his decision we found ourselves looking forward to having both another Hawkeye in the family and a reason to visit our old stomping grounds more frequently. 

Interestingly, while we've seen Will a number of times since he started college, I haven't been there a single time and Tom has only been there once since we dropped him off. Last fall, he flew home in October for a disc golf tournament, we watched him play two soccer games in Chicago, we saw him in Madison for Thanksgiving, he flew home for The Nutcracker, and then he came home for a wonderfully long winter break. A couple of weeks ago, Tom drove up north to see his family and then road-tripped back to College Station with Will for spring break. We may see him another time at a destination other than Iowa City for soccer games and we're hoping to attend a concert of his on campus, but then the semester will be over. Realizing he's less than two months away from finishing his first year of college is mind-blowing.

He's enjoyed (most of) and done well in his classes, and is starting to look into tutoring/TA positions for the future. He's happy to have found a way to continue playing fairly competitive soccer and figured out how to get to all of the local disc golf courses. (He doesn't have his car at school because of the less-than-ideal parking situation on campus.) He loves the world of intramural sports, through which he has played soccer, futsal, volleyball, flag football, spikeball, and ping pong. He's tried - and continues to attend gatherings for - many different clubs and activities: debate club, roller skating, bingo, and trivia, board game, and movie nights, to name a few. After watching Hallie and friends in Hadestown in January, he returned to college inspired, practiced for a week, and tried out for the men's acapella group...and made it. Singing in a choir - especially an acapella one - is WAY outside of Will's comfort zone but he's had a lot of fun and has enjoyed connecting with Hallie over this shared interest.

It's impossible to know, when choosing a college, university, or post-high school path, if you are - or your child is - making the right decision. I'm grateful it seems like Will has found where he's supposed to be, at least for now.

Here's a glimpse into his first year at the University of Iowa:

Go Hawks!