I'm a little bit at my wits end with nephew and could really do with advice. SIL is in process of separating from BIL and we are trying to be as supportive as we can. Her and the DC come over to ours quite often (he's still in their shared house with them, so it's a break, plus, for whatever reason she's never really been great about inviting us there - possibly because of BIL. Who knows).
However, while Dniece is a bit older and generally well behaved, dNephew is a nightmare. He's very loud (and will openly admit he's shouting to irritate someone or whatever). Annoying at best of times, but at the dinner table it drives me mad. And SIL will tell him to stop but it's all very half hearted so nothing changes. I'm a big believer in the concept of "it takes a village" but I also don't believe it is appropriate to discipline a child when their own parent is right there.
I certainly don't need him to be silent - we are quite happy for the kids to talk and even be more the centre of attention. But recent meals have included him yelling constantly at our dog and telling me he's going to give her food etc (I took the dog out on that occasion); him banging his plate and/or the table with his knife and fork while shouting; him yelling at me across the table; him yelling about how much he doesn't like a friend.
I love SIL and I know she's going through a tough time but it's driving me mad. I honestly don't think there's a solution that can simultaneously NOT upset her while making it clear to D nephew that he needs to behave better, but I live in hope the Ladies of MN will have an idea (He's 6 by the way).