DEAR ABBY: I'm worried. I think my niece is abusing her 19-month-old son. I went trick-or-treating with them, and saw my niece repeatedly pick him up by one arm and yank him up the front steps of houses. She also scolded him for not walking fast enough and kept him out until the very end of the evening. The child was completely exhausted and crying before his mother would call it a night.
My niece is stubborn and difficult to approach with suggestions. How can I approach her tactfully? I need to know exactly what words to use so she doesn't get mad and reject the idea. Please help. -- FEARFUL AUNT IN CARNEGIE, PA.
DEAR FEARFUL AUNT: Schedule a quiet visit with her -- perhaps a luncheon away from the house and baby. Tell her that you love her and are speaking not critically, but out of concern for her -- and give her a book on child development. It appears she's expecting too much too soon from her little boy. It would be a kindness -- and no one can fault you for being concerned.