Dear Prudence: My sister-in-law uses family dinner to dump her children. How can I help?

My sister-in-law is going through a divorce and uses family dinner to dump her kids, ages 3 to 9 , and go out and party.

My husband usually works right up to dinner in his home office so I am left to shoulder the burden.

My in-laws both use walkers and can't really watch the baby, let alone keep the two older kids from acting out.

My younger sister is in the process of trying to leave her abusive boyfriend, toddler in tow.

I can't afford to give her much financial help, although her current job won’t cover her basic expenses.

If she can't get a paying roommate in three months , she’ll all be homeless if she doesn't have a new roommate.

About six months ago , there was a rash of vandalism and burglaries in our town.

Most people blamed local teenagers who were doing virtual school but whose parents still worked.

"I am lucky enough to work from home, and on my lunch I went out for a run. There was a foreclosed house at the bottom of the hill, and I had the perfect view to watch a group of teenagers break in. I called the cops. All the kids were caught red-handed, including my nephew, who I didn’t realize was there.