I admit that the Netherlands is not known for its cuisine, but as far as kids are concerned, they've got you covered. 

Bitterballen & Kroketten These are essentially deep-fried meat ragout, creamy on the inside and crunchy on the outside, dipped in mustard (optional). The bitterballen are small snack balls, often served as an accompaniment to beer. The kroketten are slightly larger logs, served on bread. Both are irresistible to kids because, well, they're deep-fried. Here's your authentic local alternative to chicken nuggets.


Pannenkoeken Dutch pancakes are as big as the plate that holds them, and a guaranteed kid favorite. The sweet or savory flavor (fruit, cheese, meat) is usually cooked right into them. The most traditional offering is apple syrup, but nowadays anything goes. And the local pancake houses usually offer dozens of options. If this sounds familiar it's because I was just feeding my family Russian pancakes last week. 

Pekelvlees In English we call it corned beef, and I never knew it could taste so good. We walked into this old-school Amsterdam sandwich shop—Van Dobben—and I was in heaven. But of course you could make this at home. It's just thinly sliced pekelvlees piled high on a hamburger bun. It was so good that we went back for more, but the second time around we ordered halfom, which adds sliced liver to the mix. (Don't tell your kids what it is: just give it to them; they will love it.)

Cheese Never fear, vegetarians, there is plenty here for you to eat. Street markets, cheese mongers and tourist shops abound with local cheeses, and they always offer samples. Pick one you like, buy a baguette and you've got yourself a meal.

Daddio and I just embarked on a 10-day, twin-free, work-ation in lovely Amsterdam.


From the moment we left, we have reverted to our former childless selves, indulging in all kinds of wild and crazy activities....

Like reading on the airplane (and not Dr Seuss). I had completely forgotten about this enjoyable part of air travel — the forced down time — and I didn't bring anything to read. I bought The Most Beautiful Book in the World by Eric Emmanuel-Schmidt at the airport, and I don't even like it much, but I still read half the novellas on the airplane, just because I could.

And sleeping in. Oh, sweet luxury. Especially after reading (and not sleeping) on the airplane, Daddio and I arrived at our apartment exhausted. So guess what we did... we went to bed! We just crawled into bed and went to sleep for four hours in the middle of the day. It was amazing.

And when we got up, we walked around for the rest of the afternoon and late into the evening, with absolutely no destination in mind. We just walked, and took pictures, and stopped for beers, and dodged  cyclists, and stopped for more beers, and devoured Indonesian food, and stopped for beers again. And worked (no really, we were working!) It's going to be a good week.

Last year, I realized that this is a serious kid-friendly holiday that is not being exploited in our part of the world. It's true... There are plenty of fun Maslentisa festivities, but the main one is the eating of bliny (thin pancakes like crepes), which are a guaranteed hit with the little ones. I had to do a trial run before the party, so we've been eating them for a week straight and we're still not tired of them.


So in honor of Maslenitsa (which technically starts today), here is my no-fail recipe for bliny.

4 cups milk

5 eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Juice of 1/2-lemon

4 cups flour

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup boiling water

2/3 cup butter

Beat together milk and eggs, then add salt, sugar, baking soda and citric acid. Add flour and beat until smooth. Add vegetable oil and boiling water, stirring constantly. Set aside for 20 minutes.

Melt a pad of butter in an 8-inch frying pan over medium-high heat. Pick up the pan and pour in a ladle of batter, rotating your wrist so the batter coats the bottom of the pan. Return the pan to the heat for about two minutes. 

Once the blin begins to brown, slide it onto a spatula and flip. If it does not slide easily, it's not quite ready. Cook on the opposite side for an additional minute or two. Transfer to a plate and cover with a kitchen towel to keep warm. Add another pad of butter to the pan and repeat.

This recipe will make about 40 bliny. (Word to the wise: if you're making all 40, you might want to get two pans going.) They can be prepared in advance and heated in the microwave or served at room temperature. 

Fill with the sweet or savory of your choice. For my guests, we stuffed them with caviar, or smoked salmon and sour cream, or porcini mushrooms and raclette cheese. The twins' favorite is strawberries and whipped cream, although they also love them plain. My secret indulgence is bliny with nutella. Fold and roll and enjoy!

At the time we joined each of these fine institutions, I'm sure we had a really good reason. But I can't for the life of me figure out why we need to be members of five, count 'em FIVE different museum-type organizations.

But anyway, I know why we joined the Museum of Science. Mainly, the twins really wanted to see Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure at the Mugar Omni IMAX Theater (though I just discovered we could have watched it on YouTube).

Also, unlike most of the other museums in Boston, the MoS is close to our house. It's easy to get there and easy to park. In fact, we can even go by bus, which means the babysitter can take the twins there. So yes, we actually go to the MoS quite a lot, which is not necessarily the case with all of our membership museums.

The problem with the Museum of Science is that it is always swarming with kids. Swarming. I have the luxury of taking the twins to museums and other popular places mid-week to avoid the weekend crowds. But it just doesn't work at the MoS, because school groups come during the week, and everyone else comes on weekends. It is always swarming.

Thank the museum gods for the Discovery Center. This is the section of the MoS that is designed for smaller children (officially age 8 and under, but actually I think it's most appropriate for age 5 and under). The Discovery Center keeps its own hours and - crucially - limits the number of children in there.

The Discovery Center opens at 10am - one hour after the rest of the museum - and it usually reaches capacity within the first 15 minutes. This morning we arrived at 10am on the nose, only to discover that I didn't have my membership card with me, so I had to go to the membership desk to get a temporary pass. By the time we returned, the Discovery Center was at capacity.

Fortunately, it usually does not take long for folks to leave, considering the attention span of the under-5 set. In my experience, it's usually just enough time to review the planets in the model solar system, play on the musical steps and eat a snack. Then it's time to go in. Once inside, there are two floors of blissfully uncrowded exhibits and activities that can keep the twins occupied for hours.

There's a beehive, a bird's nest and a chipmunk burrow, all oversized so the kids can don costumes and crawl inside. There are live animals like snakes, frogs and a hedgehog tenrec (which looks like a hedgehog, but it's not a hedgehog, it's a hedgehog tenrec). There are touch tables with bones, fossils and shells, and activity boxes with puzzles, shapes and musical instruments. 

Upstairs, there are blocks, build-your-own ball runs, magnets and many other construction materials. And - Twin V's raison d'etre at the MoS - a pneumatic tube (like the ones at the drive-through window at the bank) that carries plastic letters from one side of the room to the other.

Once we get inside, we're not going anywhere for anybody (so actually, it's good that we have eaten our snack ahead of time). In fact, my only complaint about the Discovery Center is that the twins never want to leave. We have had more than one melt-down trying to get out of there. Trade-offs... 

I was flabbergasted. Didn't they want to see how it came out? Didn't they want to hold the final product in their hands and relish their success? They smiled when I asked, took out the book and flipped through the pages, then resumed what they had been doing.

Now, I understand. 

Beside my desk, there is a box containing my author copies of three different books that came out last fall. The box is open, at least, but the books are not cracked. Don't I want to see how they came out? Not really, as I'm likely to spot a typo, or a restaurant that has since closed, or something else that it's too late to fix. Don't I want to hold the final product in my hands and relish my success? Sure, I did that, now I have to get back to work.

This year I am trying to be more present to the blessings and sorrows in my life, so let me take a look at these books and share them with you. Hopefully they count as blessings.

The Food Book Mini. It's always fun to write about food. In this short and stout gift book, I wrote the chapters about Hungary, Poland and Russia. These are not my go-to cuisines when I cook, but this assignment reminded me how much I really do enjoy this food, at least occasionally. What's cool about this book? It includes my very own recipe for bigos (the Polish national dish), which you can see here.

Great Escapes. Enjoy the World at Your Leisure. This is another book with stunning photos, designed to inspire readers to go plan some fabulous trip. In the section on family travel, I wrote a chapter called "Join the Revolution in Boston." It's an old itinerary—about 200 years old—but my angle is that we need to teach our kids that sometimes it's okay to defy authority. (I'm sure I will come to regret this position.) Read an excerpt here.

Central America on a Shoestring. I don't usually work on the Shoestring series, which is Lonely Planet's guidebooks for budget travelers. They require covering a lot of ground in a short amount of time, which is the opposite of what I do when I travel with the twins. But I was desperate for work, and more desperate for a dose of the tropics. I'm so grateful I did it. It was a fabulous trip for the whole family. And I re-established my expertise on Costa Rica, giving me the opportunity to return this winter to work on the country guide. I think that Central America on a Shoestring does the job it sets out to do, but what I love about this book is, well... Costa Rica! Read an excerpt here.

Daddio is a fan of Robin Hood. He likes the classic Adventures of Robin Hood, with Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. He likes Mel Brooks' version Men in Tights. He is usually extra critical of new interpretations of his old favorites, so maybe it was risky to take him to see Heart of Robin Hood, the latest romp at the ART. But the production has gotten good buzz, so we decided to check it out.

That was the funnest date night we have had in a while. It was certainly the most fun we have ever had at the ART, even better than the Donkey Show. We did not take the twins, but I highly recommend this show for kids who are a few years older. There is some violence, including one beheading and one tongue ripping-out (!) But it's also packed with all the stuff that kids like—amazing acrobatics, slapstick comedy and plenty of comeuppance. And Christmas lights. 

Plus a soundtrack of rollicking roots music by the "Alt Americana" band Poor Old Shine. I'm not sure what Alt Americana means, but this band rocks the house with bluegrass. Check them out.

According to playwright David Farr, his daughters were complaining that female characters on stage never get to do anything besides "kiss the hero, swoon, cook pretty pastries and sew." So he set out to write them a daring and inspiring female character. In his version of the old tale, Robin Hood is nothing but a thug, stealing from the rich and keeping for himself. His band is not merry, but actually rather cynical. The spunky Maid Marion sees through his hardened exterior and sets out to change his ways, converting him from harrier to hero.

Here's the ART's promo video, showing what people like about this show:

Here's what I liked about this show: the set. The stage centers on a giant oak tree, which allows the actors to swing, climb and frolic just as you imagine forest-dwelling thieves would do (in addition to some pretty impressive aerial acrobatics that are probably beyond the skill level of most thieves). In the middle of the stage there is a swamp with real water, and additional holes for the bad guys to fall into and the good guys to jump into (and occasionally out of). And at the back: a huge grassy hillside, perfect for spectacular sliding entrances. 

These actors were clearly having a ball, and no wonder, as they were playing in an oversized playground. So, yes, it's good for kids. Of all ages. You just might have trouble keeping them in their seats.