9yr old ds.... Oh yeah... mine too... although I am making some cargo canvas pants out of urban camo that he is excited about.

Tara, I serger as well... I passed down a pair that I made Cyan two years ago to a friend who has now passed them down to another toddler. They are still going strong. Don't you love seeing that??? As far as backing and top stitching: the knits lay WAY different than the denim or canvas or even cord. And if you were using knits for the pannels then there would be no reason to top stitch, but when using knits with woven side pannels is the only time I have found it important to not back them and top stitch. It looks crisp as well. I guess this all depends on your knits and woven combo though.