Rendezvous - ­a meeting at an agreed time and place, typically between two people. What does this word mean to you? Does it mean something saucy? Wild? Perhaps even secretive? Yea. It used to mean that to me too. But now I am a mom. A mom of twins who will be four in September. And the word is used in a very different way now.

It is summertime. Time to break loose and just enjoy life. Time to show our littles what it means to be one with nature. To embrace the long days. To dance in the rain on summer evenings. To get muddy and enjoy it. And to rendezvous with those that you love.

Yesterday I texted my neighbor who happens to be one of my closest friends. She also happens to have two young children, one that is very close in age to my kids. My text read – “Is Katie up from nap? Perhaps we should rendezvous in your front yard…” Without missing a beat, she replied that nap was a no-go there and that they would be out momentarily. My kids and I (and one extra neighbor kid) sauntered over to her yard and proceeded to dance (aka tushy shake in the words of my twins) by her giant tree until they emerged from their front door. The kids all giggled and ran around playing tag, while my friend and I sat on the front steps chatting about…ummm – I actually have no idea. The days sometimes blur. The conversations seem so important at the time and often are forgotten shortly after because the next “event” in the lives of our little ones is under way. We do always have some crazy story to share, though, in hopes that the other will look with knowing eyes and just understand. And thankfully that is always the case. To rendezvous (for this summer and in this moment at least) is to meet up with those mom friends that I can genuinely and authentically connect with AND for those same friends to embrace the parenting style I wholeheartedly believe in – which is care less about the BS that just doesn’t matter, dance with your loved ones - both to the sound of the music you genuinely love AND to the wild beat of the drums of life …and for goodness sake -- let kids be kids!

This afternoon we had thunderstorms here. The kids and I watched Mother Nature do her own dance across our front yard. The trees howled with laughter as their branches and leaves blew in the wind. What a wonderful thing to be both grounded by solid roots and yet somehow wildly free in that very moment! (That is the way our kids live too, though, isn’t it?) As the thunder and lightning passed, the kids and I looked knowingly at each other. Let’s rendezvous – grab your boots and meet me on the front porch!

It was still raining out, but the storm had passed and the air hugged us with warmth and love as we emerged out of our front door. The laughter echoed as they jumped in puddles and soaked themselves. The surprisingly large raindrops bounced off of our heads as the three of us giggled at what to me felt like a baptism from nature. I stopped to really feel the rain, the warm air, and my breath – in and out. Slowly. Trying desperately to both memorize that perfect moment forever AND somehow to also nod my head to my authentic self -- letting her know that even though I have ventured away from some things that make my own soul sing…I am still here and still trying to listen within. Sometimes what looks like an impromptu play with my kids is in fact a rendezvous I am having with my inner self, because let’s be honest fellow moms…we MUST check in with her once in a while to stay sane, right?!

The kids are in bed. I am sipping wine with my husband and watching TV. We laugh about the crazy day, the completely ridiculous drama that comes with having nearly four year old twins, and the way we navigate life being these adults that we have somehow become. We often reminisce about the old days when we were living the life in our West Village apartment, going out to dinner three to four times a week, sleeping late, not worrying about money, and doing exactly what we wanted to do at any given time during the day. We also remember, though, how hard it was for us to get to this point in our lives and how desperately we wanted to have a family. We are exactly where we want to be. We chat about how it is okay that life has changed so much and that when we rendezvous now, it often looks extremely different than the yesteryears.

But does it? Don’t we sometimes still transport back in time and act out the scenes of our past together? Is it us going back in time, or are we at a point where our heads are above water enough that a proper rendezvous is attainable?! Honestly I am not sure. But I am happy to debate it with my sweet husband, whose facial expression has shifted a bit.

With a devious sparkle in his eyes, he smirks at me and suggests we head upstairs. I glance at the clock – 9:20pm – we had a solid 25 minutes until bedtime. I shake my head and laugh. Let’s rendezvous!

-Michelle Ann Brock