Do you have your kids call non-family "aunt" and "uncle"

[NY Disney fan]

The other day my sister, in front of her son, referred to one of her friends as "Aunt Jane". I took offense to this as I am the real aunt. This person has only been in my sister's life for a couple of years and (in many circumstances) friends come and go, in my opinion. Why should friends have the title "aunt" or "uncle" along side the biological aunt and uncle? What has been your experience?

 

[java]

My kids call my best friend Aunt V. I see her more than I see my sister or brother. And frankly she is more involved in their day to day life.
So Yes my kids do call non- family Aunt. And they call my cousin Uncle R(But technically that is family)

 

[Blueeyes101817]

I had (and still have) many aunts/uncles that are non-family. My father is a firefighter and his coworkers are closer to me than many of my family members. I always called them (and still do) uncle .....
I am called "aunt jen" by my best friend's daughter--my friend and I have been like brother and sister since we were young...so it would not offend me in the least, but I know every family is different

 

[NY Disney fan]

My kids call my best friend Aunt V. I see her more than I see my sister or brother. And frankly she is more involved in their day to day life.

That's perfectly understandable. Wondering if anyone has family that IS involved in the kids life but still calls friends aunt and uncle.

 

[freckles and boo]

Yep. My kids are lucky enough to have lots of adults in their lives who love them and care about them. My good friend is their Aunt Karen and my husband's best friend is their Uncle Jim. Our friends are like family. That doesn't in any way affect how they feel about their "real" aunts and uncles (who are also very involved in their lives!).

 

[Mkrop]

That's perfectly understandable. Wondering if anyone has family that IS involved in the kids life but still calls friends aunt and uncle.

Yes my kids call my BF's aunt and uncle even though my brothers are very active in thier lives

 

[merrily]

My kids have lots of biological aunts and uncles who we see regularly and have great relationships with. They also call my husband's best friend uncle. Always have, always will. I rather have them call him Uncle Tom than just Tom and Mr. Smith seems to formal for someone we have such a close relationship with. I guess I don't see what the big deal is. It certainly doesn't diminish the relationships the kids (now teens) have with their bio relatives.

 

[Gina]

My DS has called my best friend of 20-odd years "Aunt Cindy" since he could talk. She's as much my aunt as my brother is his uncle.

To me, "family" has precious little to do with biology. I adore my actual family, but there are people, like my stepfather, whom I couldn't possibly love or admire any more if he was biologically related to me. I'm just happy that DS and I have wonderful, supportive "family" in our lives, whether blood-related or not.

 

[JessicaR]

We did as kids and it always bugged me. I don't do it with my children.

 

[HelenePA]

Dh has worked with most his coworkers since the kids were born.. when he talks about them he refers to them as Aunt and Uncles because they've been involved with our kids for the last 8 years.. they are more than friends. They really are like family. I also refer to my brother's gf as aunt val.. he's gonna marry her anyway.. may as well call her auntie val now.

 

[bballmom56]

Yep, when my brother and I were young, we called my father's best friend and his wife "aunt and uncle..."

When my kids were born, they were taught to call our best friends aunt and uncle as well as a very close friend I had where I worked. As others have said, my kids saw them more often than their bio aunts and uncles.

 

[Mellie2162]

Never. My dh for the longest time growing had to call his mother's boyfriend uncle Bud so his father wouldnt find out she was cheating. He finally did find out and it was a blow to my dh that uncle Bud wasnt actually an uncle but a boyfriend.

I personally dont see anything wrong with it as long as the parents are comfortable with it.

 

[HM]

As kids, my parents had us call quite a few of their friends "aunt" and "uncle". One of my mother's best friends is still "auntie beth" to me and now to my kids as well. I see nothing wrong with denoting close friends as 'aunt' or 'uncle'.

 

[Disney Doll]

I'm an "real" aunt to 5 nieces and nephews. These 5 kids also have other adults in their lives who are not related who they call Aunrt & Uncle as well...it doesn't faze me a bit.

I am "Auntie Patty" to a whole heckuva lot more kids than that! I have always been very grateful to our friends who have so generously shared their children with us throughout the years, especially since DH & I could not have children of our own.

I am even Auntie Patty to some of the nieces' & nephews' (both the related & non-related ones) friends...I spend at least 10 minutes every time I am in the local grocery store saying hello to kids calling out "Hi Auntie Patty!"...and I love it!

My theory is that whether you are related by blood or love, kids always benefit from having a lot of people who love them.

 

[okeydokey]

We did growing up. A close friend of my Dad's and my oldest brother's Godfather was always Uncle Joe. We continued to refer to him as Uncle Joe until he passed away recently. We have a couple of friends that we call Uncle too. I don't think my brother's actually care that the kids call non-family members Uncle as it doesn't effect their own relationship with the kids.

 

[Darsa]

I make a HUGE effort to try to be as much in my niece and nephew's lives as possible because what they have going for them right now is... not much. They call me Auntie, and it actually does bother me a bit that they also call these people who are completely unrelated but friends with their mother "Auntie" as well. I always assumed I was being silly and never said anything, but it IS nice to know that I'm not the only one who feels that way.

 

[mikeyandscoobyx2]

I call non-family my aunts and uncles. I see them more then I see real family, and calling them something else just wouldn't be right.

 

[SpecialK]

No. One of my friends has her kids call me Auntie J and I've always been uncomfortable with it.

 

[Mermaid02]

The other day my sister, in front of her son, referred to one of her friends as "Aunt Jane". I took offense to this as I am the real aunt. This person has only been in my sister's life for a couple of years and (in many circumstances) friends come and go, in my opinion. Why should friends have the title "aunt" or "uncle" along side the biological aunt and uncle? What has been your experience?

Yes. My best friend of over 30 years and my dh's best friend and his wife. A kid can't have too many people care for them and love them- it's a term of love and respect and I don't see the problem with it.

 

[tazdev3225]

My kids do. My DH has had his best friend since they were 14, going on 40 years. The thought of them calling him by his first name alone was wrong, and Mr ? was just as wrong. He has and always will be Uncle Larry. My DD's also each have a best friend since they were very little, over 20 years. My grandkids call one Aunt Yoko and one Aunt Crystal. My oldest DGD was actually named after Aunt Crystal. It was a pact they made when they were 8 or 9. Aunt Crystal also calls me Mom and my DD calls her mother Mom. It doesn't bother any of us. I think its great that my DH and kids have friends that have lasted for so long. I actually envy them that. i moved to much as a kid to form lasting bonds with anyone.