Back when I was 8, I wanted to be just like my dad (before finding out his actual personality). I wanted to have the bodily characteristics of an AMAB person if that makes sense, IDK how to word it. I wanted to be mistaken for a boy, do the stereotypical boy things, reject makeup and dresses, and I went through a “girls stink” phase like some young boys did. I wanted my hair cut short because it made me look like a boy and even wanted to wear my dad’s clothes simply because they were “men’s clothes”.
“Girl" didn’t feel right to me but growing up in a certain kind of family, all I knew was the word “tomboy”, so I used that. But my family tried to convince me I was the most feminine girly girl, and that just wasn’t me. It felt wrong.
I highly recommend checking out LGBT organizations in your area, some of them have hobby clubs and meetups and whatnots (if there’s none in your local area try calling one anyway, maybe there are people interested in being online friends).
The question you asked screams lack of confidence and honestly the best cure would be to add some queer friends.
Of course it’s okay to say “when I was a little boy”. Why wouldn’t it be? Did someone told you it’s not okay to say that? Who was it?