I just bought my 5-year-old son some new pants, as he has growth-spurted out of his old ones. As he tried on the new pants and I adjusted the waistband to the appropriate snugness, it hit me... Why don't grown-up pants have adjustable waistbands for the perfect fit? I have all kinds of trouble finding pants that fit me properly, and usually end up using a belt to take up the slack in the waist.

Forget those bunched up elastic waistbands. I want pants with the hidden adjustable elastic that can be buttoned at varying lengths to fit just right. Why has no one thought of this before?

Just think of the possibilities! Eat too much for dinner... discreetly loosen the waistband. Gain a couple extra inches over the holidays... loosen the waistband. Doing so well with your New Year's resolution that you've lost an inch or two... tighten that waistband and keep on wearing your favorite pants! And as adults, we don't even have to worry about outgrowing the length of our pants. Just think how much adjustable waistbands would extend the wear of our clothes!

Sure, it's possible there may be some adult pants out there somewhere with this feature already, but I think it should be standard for most pants. Why not? Oh, but here comes a conspiracy theory... maybe companies don't make them for adults because we wouldn't have to buy as many pairs of pants. Ah, well... I still think it would be genius. And a company that started offering such pants should surely benefit from some customer loyalty.