craftgrrl | Need help with doll shorts...

I am hoping someone can help me out here...ok, so a friend commissioned me to make 5 sock kitties for her nieces & nephews...3 of them in dresses for the girls, 2 of them in shorts for the boys...well I am CRAP at drafting doll clothes. I figured out some simple jumpers for the girls, and they look pretty cute. But I am so stuck on the shorts. Has anyone ever made shorts that are roughly sock monkey size? I looked for a free pattern online, but was unable to find anything.

First I tried making them using a pattern looking like this:

The less said about that disaster the better. Next I tried making them from a pattern looking something like this:

Which worked a little better, but there was still a lot of bunching in the crotch area (hee hee, I said crotch bunching)...and the shorts came up to the correct length in the front, but were way too short to cover up the butt in the back.

Does anyone have any ideas? I *have* to deliver these kitties tomorrow, so tonight after work is the last day I can work on them! If I have to go out to the fabric store at lunch and buy a pattern I will, but I was hoping someone here could help first! x-posted to craftgrrl.