In the book "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," four teenage friends marvel at the magical jeans that fit all of them perfectly despite their varying body types. Silly youth. Those jeans weren't made of magic. Oh, no, what you discovered was the wonder of pregnancy jeans.

Over the years, I have spoken extensively of my love for pregnancy jeans. I have commented on how the loose fabric and large elastic band should be embraced by the general public. They are perfect for your dad as he gets up to hit the Carnival cruise buffet line for the 15th time that day. The extra layer of fabric should be embraced by your aunt Sally, who always complains about being cold. The elastic top is perfect for your children and grandparents alike who aren't quite potty-trained. And pregnancy jeans will be an instant favorite of your kleptomaniac nephew's, who is always looking for a new place to stash his stolen goods before exiting a store.

It once seemed to me there was nothing the jeans could not do, no occasion the jeans could not rise to. For example, when you are out on a first date and you want to bring home the rest of your meal but are too embarrassed to ask for a doggie bag, bam! Pregnancy jeans! When you are in training to become a speed eater but don't want to buy a new wardrobe while becoming the world's fastest hot dog eater. When you don't have enough hands to carry all your groceries to the car. Pregnancy jeans to the rescue!

Alas, despite seeming infallible, pregnancy jeans have indeed met their match: winter. More specifically, winter with a toddler and baby.

At 12 weeks postpartum, I still exclusively wear my pregnancy jeans. I am not ashamed of this for two reasons. 1) With the first child, I still exclusively wore pregnancy jeans two years postpartum. 2) See entire column up to this point. To be fair, the jeans should be wonderful for wintertime. Their ultra-loose elastic waistband lends itself to wearing leggings underneath the jeans. Sadly, I don't own any leggings. If I had leggings, today would have gone very differently.

Despite the temperature's sitting at a less-than-comfortable 14 degrees, my friend and I decided to take our children to a nearby trampoline park. Apparently, every other parent had the same idea for indoor fun. We had to park half a football field away from the front door. Because of the cold weather, I opted to keep my sleeping baby in her car seat and carry the seat into the facility. My baby, lovingly called beefstick, is quite the chunky monkey. Carrying her in the car seat requires both my hands. And this is where the trouble began.

Because we were walking through a parking lot and I was unable to hold on to my toddler, I asked him to grab my shirt. He grabbed the jeans instead. As I walked, he clung to the jeans. But he couldn't keep up. The more he tugged on my jeans the lower they got. I wanted to hoist them up but couldn't. Both hands were holding the car seat, and I didn't want to put her down in the middle of a packed parking lot, especially because it was freezing outside. No, we had to keep moving. I told myself it would be fine. But it wasn't fine.

The faster I moved across the parking lot the more my son struggled to keep up and the lower my jeans got as the elastic band gave way. The jeans were pulled down past my bottom and down to my thighs.

"Pull up the jeans! Grab my shirt!" I yelled to my son. He started to cry. "I'm cold," he said through chattered teeth. I looked to the front door, still tens of yards away. I felt the cold sting the back of my thighs.

Screw it.

"Let's run, baby," I said, and my toddler and I took off, with me still carrying the baby in the car seat and my son still pulling down my pants. When we got to the front door, my pregnancy jeans were down by my knees.

A patron leaving the facility opened the door for me. I held my head up high, thanked the man and shuffled inside the warm building, where I finally, gratefully, pulled up my pregnancy pants.

Like Katiedid Langrock on Facebook, at http://www.facebook.com/katiedidhumor. To find out more about Katiedid Langrock and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Donnie Ray Jones