Is it okay to discipline other people's kids?

There are several considerations here: how old is this daughter? And what exactly is the problem at hand- is she badly behaved? Disresepctful of you?In my experience before becoming a mom, every child that I have seen, especially those with bad behavior, are crying out for some sort of stability- they crave it from the moment they are born. Part of stability is discipline. Discipline does not have to be mean or hurt the child, but it does establish boundaries and reasonable expectations. (Ie: if you disrespect me, there are consequences). I feel you are doing a disservice to the daughter by not treating her as 'your child.' You are in a relationship with her parent that seems rather committed, so in essence there is a responsibility to her as another parent in her life. My husband and I have a housemate with a 3 year old girl and we regularly help with discipline. WE reinforce her mother's views and are a support network for the both of them to help her adjust to life only with her mommy (her parents are now divorced). IT's been a blessing for her to have those boundaries set and less of a headache for all of us, since she knows and can obey the rules of the house we have set forth as adults.Good luck in this- it's not easy to discipline but I think you will find a new sense of freedom and love once you take the initiative to establish yourself as a respected adult in her life. She doesn't need an adult 'friend'- she needs an adult who cares enough to see her at her very best.

I feel you have a responsibility as an adult to help the child. Disciplining is simply helping them learn. It doesn't have to be a negative thing. As we all know, it takes a village to raise a child and we can all use some help from time to time. Since you've never done it before, anything you say will probably be listened to as something novel and will probably WORK. Imagine that!