Look up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! ...

Isn't it funny how kids automatically pick a role model to emulate? You don't have to tell them to do it. They just automatically pick something and start acting like it at every opportune moment. As parents, we try to provide them with good role models to choose from. I mean, can you imagine how disturbing it would be if your kids started pretending to be Hitler, the Unabomber or Bill Clinton?


My role model growing up was Superman. He was the coolest! He is super-strong, can see through objects and can fly! (On top of all that, he was a nice guy, too!) I loved pretending to be Superman!


One day my parents bought me a pair of Superman Underoos. I was tearing through the plastic package like a kid at Christmas because I couldn't wait to wear them. I put on the shirt and the shorts and threw on the cape my mom had made for me last Halloween and "flew" out of the house faster than a speeding bullet. I spent all day jumping off of fences and porches and "flying" all around the neighborhood. It was great!


My parents thought it was all very cute. But, as I went to bed that night, they gently explained that the "shorts" were really underwear and are meant to be worn under clothing. And while Superman may wear his underwear over his tights, mine were never seen by the public again.


I still love Superman, and my boys have all acquired that same interest. My middle son, Joe, is a Superman fanatic and insists on many occasions that I call him "Superman" instead of by his name. He has Superman pajamas that he wore for his Halloween costume this year. He loves to watch the movies and cartoons, look at the comic books, and play with the action figures. He even has Superman underwear and on occasion will announce to a visitor to our home, "I am wearing Superman underwear! See?" He then quickly pulls his pants down before his mother can stop him so that the visitor can verify the truth of his statement.


Kids - you gotta love 'em ... because they are just super!