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When you have kids, your number one responsibility as a parent is to keep them safe.

If you thought your nephew was in danger, would you speak up or assume that your brother (his dad) knows better and is taking precautions for his safety?

In this story, one young woman is really concerned about her nephew’s safety. He’s been playing in her parents’ backyard while their patio is under construction.

She brought her concerns up to her mom who brushed them off as no big deal. Now, she’s not sure if she’s overreacting or if she’s right to be worried.

Let’s read the whole story to decide.

AITA for being concerned about the safety of my 7 year old nephew on what is basically a construction site?

So I’m 23 and I live with my parents.

Even before the pandemic I did because I went to uni before it hit and it was just financially better than renting out a place near uni. Would be about the same price even with travel.

I’m graduated now though.

She’s worried about her nephew.

So yeah lately they wanted to start building a patio outside. My mum thought it would be nice to have BBQs and family over (during a pandemic but whatever).

So my dad, brother and my future brother in law are working on it every Sunday.

It’s been a few weeks now. But the past few weeks my brother has started letting his son come over to “help” because his wife doesn’t want to look after him all day. (That’s a long story in itself).

So I said to my mum today. “Is it really smart to let a 7 year old child run around out there? A couple weeks ago he dropped a hammer on his toe and wouldn’t stop crying. The week before that he had an axe that he was swinging around. And today you have a digger and a pickaxe out there while he’s playing rugby and throwing the rugby ball everywhere.”

Her mom doesn’t seem worried.

My mum told me to “Stop being a jerk because I don’t like my nephew.”

Which isn’t true. I hate kids yeah. I think they’re annoying. But I love my nephew and my nieces and I don’t like the fact that my Nephew is being allowed to run wild on what is basically a construction site every week.

My mum also said “It’s fine because his father knows he’s there”.

Which.. I don’t get? Because kids are wild and unpredictable and just because my brother knows he’s there, doesn’t mean my Nephew won’t run in front of the digger fast enough for my brother to be unable to react.

So AITA?

I get that she’s worried. It doesn’t sound safe to me either, but unless she’s offering to babysit, there may not be anything she can do about it.

Let’s see what Reddit has to say.

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This person doesn’t think it’s wrong to be concerned.

But this person thinks she’s overreacting.

Another person thinks the nephew needs to be watched closely.

This person has a theory about why OP’s mother is acting like it’s not a big deal.

I hope that little boy doesn’t get hurt. If only OP or her mother would offer to watch him. I get that he wants to “help,” but it doesn’t sounds like anyone is really supervising him so he can actually help with the project.

This really sounds dangerous.

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Author

Jayne Elliott

Jayne Elliott | Contributing Writer, Life & Drama

Jayne Elliott is a contributing writer and editor for TwistedSifter specializing in human interest stories, internet culture, and family dynamics. With over 12 years of editorial experience in digital publishing, Jayne excels at analyzing complex online communities and transforming viral social debates into thoughtful, highly engaging narratives.

Rather than simply aggregating internet drama, Jayne brings a sharp, empathetic editorial eye to everyday dilemmas. She has a unique talent for unpacking the nuances of pop culture and online conflicts, providing readers with relatable, well-researched commentary.

Based in California, Jayne spends her free time outside the newsroom exploring theme parks with her family or beach-combing along the coast.

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