Pet Peeve

I know that what I'm about to write makes me an incredibly uncharitable person in many ways, but it is a personal pet peeve.  Therefore, the peeve likely says a great deal about me.  I'm okay with that.  Please don't remind me of my uncharitable nature; I'm already well aware of it.  I'm working on it.  I am, however, self-aware enough to realize this pet peeve is likely not going away anytime soon.  I have never told anyone who does what I'm about to describe how much it annoys me;  I have always successfully managed to hide my annoyance because I do know that, ultimately, the people making the annoying statement are making it out of love.  But honestly, it still irritates me.

Here it is: I do not like it when other people refer to Wild Man and Bear as "my little boys."  Call them your nephews, your buddies, your sweethearts, your grandsons, your great-grandsons, your friends.  Do not call them "my little boys."  They are not "your little boys."  They are mine and Archer's little boys, and we don't even refer to them that way.  Why?  Because, ultimately, they are individuals and we don't own them.  And neither do you.