Is this a common pet name for an adult child?

[DisneyBeagle]

I guess I'm in the minority because if my MIL called Dh "my darling sweetheart" we would probably both gag.

Terms of endearment are nice..."honey, dear, sweetheart".... but "my darling sweetheart" just sounds like something you say to your lover, not an adult child.

Well, my husband agrees with you. He got off the phone with her last night and said to me "I hate when she calls me that. It makes me want to vomit. I'm not her husband."

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

I don't know what my MIL calls DH, except maybe just, son, but she calls me my darling girl and I am pretty sure that is not what she actually means!

My mom would sometimes call me baby, which drove me nuts, it wasn't on a regular basis and she said no matter how old I was, I would always be her baby, now that she is gone, I miss it She called DH by his first name when he was around, if she was mad at him she would call him whatever came out of her mouth at the time when she was talking to me

I have to agree with your DH, my darling sweetheart does seem a little more like what she should call her husband.

Suzanne

 

[stepmommyof1]

Sweetheart sounds ok to me for a son.
Just not the whole "my darling" thing, seems uncomfortable to me. Like it's meant in a husband kind of way.

I will call stepson "sweetheart" sometimes, but not "MY sweetheart"...may not sound like much of a difference , but let me say it this way:

Stepson is a sweetheart, but MY sweetheart is my husband

 

[Rora]

I'd say it's pretty normal..

 

[nmmom95]

My sons are only 13 and almost 8, but I call them nicknames like that all the time and have no intention of stopping. I don't really do it consciously, it just comes out. I call my younger DS "my baby" all the time. I think the arguments against it sound like semantics.

 

[sbell111]

Well, my husband agrees with you. He got off the phone with her last night and said to me "I hate when she calls me that. It makes me want to vomit. I'm not her husband."

He can tell you this and you can tell us this from now until the crops come in. Nothing will change unless he tells her that it bugs him. That being said, I think that he is being overly sensitive.

Either way, he needs to go to the closet and find his big boy pants.

 

[nmmom95]

He can tell you this and you can tell us this from now until the crops come in. Nothing will change unless he tells her that it bugs him. That being said, I think that he is being overly sensitive.

Either way, he needs to go to the closet and find his big boy pants.

I agree with this. I came back to this thread to add that if one of my son's told me that they didn't like it, I would stop.

 

[kim929]

are you watching Gene Simmons family jewels?

 

[DisneyBeagle]

He can tell you this and you can tell us this from now until the crops come in. Nothing will change unless he tells her that it bugs him. That being said, I think that he is being overly sensitive.

Either way, he needs to go to the closet and find his big boy pants.

I have no doubt that he'll tell her to stop if she does it again. This is something that she has only started doing a few weeks ago and he was just hoping it was a phase. We both get a good chuckle about it after he hangs up the phone.

 

[JessicaR]

I have no doubt that he'll tell her to stop if she does it again. This is something that she has only started doing a few weeks ago and he was just hoping it was a phase. We both get a good chuckle about it after he hangs up the phone.

I wonder why she just started doing this after 40 years? How old is she?

 

[luvmy3]

Thanks for the responses. My MIL calls my husband "my darling sweetheart" and it drives him nuts.

My answer depends on whether she has always called him that, or if she only started after you guys got married

 

[wintershawl]

My parents just call me by my name, so I don't really have a point of reference for this. Is it common for a mother to call her 40+ year old son "my darling sweetheart?"

It's possible that she has always called him that. The pet name stuck. She may find it endearing... not sure what he thinks. All the same, I don't find it odd. Thankfully my parents never made up a pet name for me! lol

 

[Lassie Lynne]

When I met my future in-law's (well before we were engaged) and we were saying good-bye, DH's mother said to him "come here, my little guy". I couldn't help but smile a little....after all, DH was 40 at the time and not so little.

You never grow old to your parents.

 

[Aisling]

I'd say it's pretty normal..

I agree. I've actually called my oldest son "my darling sweetheart" many times. He's 25 and engaged. I can see how it may sound strange, but when I say it, it's just a mom happy to see her son.

 

[disykat]

I guess I'm in the minority because if my MIL called Dh "my darling sweetheart" we would probably both gag.

Terms of endearment are nice..."honey, dear, sweetheart".... but "my darling sweetheart" just sounds like something you say to your lover, not an adult child.

I agree

Sweetheart sounds ok to me for a son.
Just not the whole "my darling" thing, seems uncomfortable to me. Like it's meant in a husband kind of way.

I will call stepson "sweetheart" sometimes, but not "MY sweetheart"...may not sound like much of a difference , but let me say it this way:

Stepson is a sweetheart, but MY sweetheart is my husband

Also agree. I don't get the "my" thing.

I have no doubt that he'll tell her to stop if she does it again. This is something that she has only started doing a few weeks ago and he was just hoping it was a phase. We both get a good chuckle about it after he hangs up the phone.

I think it's amusing that it's new. I'd be tempted to come up with some new ones for her too! One up her with outrageousness. "Goodbye, my lovely maiden," "See ya later sweet cheeks," etc. Have a little fun with it. Maybe it's just the way my family thinks, but I'm betting we'd never let "my darling sweetheart" ride without a whole lot of laughter!

Or how about telling her he'll be "her darling sweetheart" if she'll be his "mommy dearest?"

 

[Cee]

My kids are all adults and I call them "sweetie" or "dollface", things like that.

 

[teacup princess]

Most of my Dad's family calls me "Sissy" even to this day. It's a southern term of endearment for a baby sister. I'm almost 40 years old. I answer to it, but please don't do this to a child.

 

[Disney Doll]

"My darling sweetheart" sounds a bit "possessive" for a mother to be calling her adult son...a tad over the top. And I agree with some of the PPs that it's the "my darling" part that seems a little too...girlfriend-like...as opposed to mother-like.

I probably wouldn't make a huge issue out of it unless she started calling him that in front of friends and family, because it could be embarrassing. As long as she keeps it contained to when it's a conversation between him and her pretty much, then I'd probably just let Mama say what makes her feel better.

Just tell her not to yell out "My darling sweetheart could you bring me a hot dog" at the family reunion this summer in front of 150 of his closest friends and relatives.