DEAR ABBY: I am married, for a year and a half, with no children yet. I am an only child who was raised by my mother. My mother never remarried. She blames me for her never having found anyone, and she is resentful of my marriage. She doesn't get along with anyone, not family, co-workers or "friends."

She thinks my husband is her handyman to use around her house. The reality is, my husband works all the time, and when he does have any free time, I either want to spend it with him or need him to do things around our home. I'm afraid the day I tell her I'm pregnant her response will be laced with disdain and judgment, and I believe she will use my children as pawns like she used me to manipulate my dad.

I have seen a therapist about this, but I'm having a hard time following through on what needs to be done. My therapist suggests I tell Mom how I feel and let her know that if she continues with her current behavior, I will have to limit the amount of time we see each other.

Abby, she has said some really hurtful things to me in the past. I know her behavior is wrong, but I continue trying to be the daughter I am supposed to be so we can hopefully have the relationship we are supposed to have. I welcome your advice. -- HAD ENOUGH

DEAR HAD ENOUGH: Here it is, and I cannot offer it emphatically enough. You hired a therapist who has given you excellent advice. You will save yourself a lot of grief -- and time -- if you take to heart what you were told and follow the advice you were given. To create boundaries is not being a bad daughter; it is being an intelligent one.

DEAR ABBY: I'm currently interning with a government-contracted group. Part of my job involves working with LGBT rights organizations. Recently, at a meeting with my boss and several representatives of these organizations, the topic of fairness in the workplace was mentioned. I was asked what my experience was, and I shared that I thought the workplace was fair, and my experience was fine.

I didn't think about it at the time, but I now realize I was being asked how my experience was as an LGBT person. In light of this, my boss has nominated me for a diversity award. The problem is I'm a heterosexual female, and I think he promoted me for the honor because he thinks I am gay.

How should I handle this? Do I need to go on record to my boss that I am straight, that I have a boyfriend, and he misunderstood me? I don't want this to come back to haunt me, but I'm afraid addressing it may ruin my credibility because it has taken so long for me to address it. My sexual orientation is obviously not something of great interest at work, but I feel I am living a terrible lie, and I don't know how to fix this. -- ASHAMED IN D.C.

DEAR ASHAMED: No one should feel compelled to disclose one's sexual orientation at work, no matter the circumstances. That said, in this particular case, go to your boss before this goes any further. Explain to him privately that you didn't realize when the question was asked that anyone would presume you were gay. If you accept the diversity award without clearing the air first, it could potentially be a source of embarrassment and jeopardize your credibility.

DEAR ABBY: My 11-year-old daughter recently asked to have a sleepover with some of her best friends. She's part of a "club" with five other girls. Four of them are her best friends, so she invited them. However, my daughter is not close with the fifth girl, "Debbie." They don't hang out at school and barely hang out during their club activities.

When Debbie's mother found out my daughter had invited the others, she accused me of excluding Debbie intentionally. I received a rude text from her telling me they were quitting the club.

In the past, we have gone above and beyond to keep her daughter included in the club activities, but when it comes to my daughter wanting to hang out with her friends outside of that, I feel she should be able to invite whoever she wants. Should I have made my daughter invite Debbie to her sleepover even though they aren't really friends? -- "MEAN MOM"

DEAR "MEAN MOM": Obviously, Debbie is close enough with some of the other girls that they told her about the sleepover. Your daughter may not like Debbie as much as she likes the other "club" members -- which seems more like a clique to me -- but I don't think that's a reason to exclude or attempt to isolate her. Because all of the other girls were asked, Debbie should not have been snubbed. For a moment, put yourself in her shoes.

DEAR ABBY: I have many friends with grandchildren, two of whom love to show me photos of them. I don't mind looking at a few, but recently, during a two-hour lunch, one friend insisted on showing me pictures and videos the entire time. I swear I'm not exaggerating. Another friend has four five-minute videos I'm supposed to watch.

I show pictures of my grandchildren only occasionally. Would it be rude if, the next time this happens, I say something like, "I'd love to see a couple, but remember -- I have eight grandchildren and more than 700 photos and videos on my phone"? -- BLEARY-EYED IN CALIFORNIA

DEAR BLEARY-EYED: I don't think it would be rude. It might be an effective reminder that granny-bragging is a two-way street.

DEAR ABBY: My niece is soliciting donations for her boyfriend's young daughter's upcoming operation. I'm hesitant because they both smoke, and with the price of cigarettes these days, it's taking a chunk out of his paycheck -- not to mention the health risks. I realize the child isn't to blame. Should we go ahead and donate, knowing some it is being used to finance their tobacco habit? -- NO FAN OF SMOKING

DEAR NO FAN OF SMOKING: This is not a referendum on smoking; it's a request for help to pay for needed surgery for a child. Yes, you should give them a donation if you have it to spare.

DEAR ABBY: After the birth of our son, "Ricky," my husband insisted he sleep in our bed with us. When our son was 3, I finally put my foot down because none of us were sleeping peacefully. Ricky is now 8, and my husband lies in his bed with him until he falls asleep.

Our daughter, "Julie," was born 2 1/2 years ago. She slept in our bed until she was 1, when I moved her to her own bed. She goes down well on her own, but seems to be more clingy (with me especially) during the day. I try to make sure she gets the affection she needs before bedtime, but I feel guilty that she doesn't get that closeness at night.

By the end of the day I'm exhausted, and I do not want to fall asleep in a kid's bed. Am I wrong for wanting bedtime without kids? At what age should children sleep on their own? -- SLEEPY IN CALIFORNIA

DEAR SLEEPY: You're not wrong. Some parents co-sleep with their children for the first few months after they are born because they enjoy the closeness. After that, they transition the baby to sleeping in a crib nearby so the child's needs can be attended to as necessary.

According to Los Angeles pediatrician Faisal Chawla, M.D., children form their sleep habits early: "The longer co-sleeping continues, the more difficult sleeping separately becomes. At 7 or 8 months, babies begin to develop age-appropriate separation anxiety. By the age of 1, a routine is usually set in a child's mind. By age 2, it becomes very difficult to change the sleeping routine because of the 'terrible 2s' temperament that begins."

Your husband has done Ricky no favors by continuing to lie beside him until he falls asleep. Your son should have started sleeping alone years ago. A boy his age should be able to go to sleepovers at friends' houses or away to summer camp without having to worry about sleeping because his dad isn't there.

DEAR ABBY: My boss and his wife recently hosted an employee appreciation dinner party at their home. We have close to 100 employees, and because of limited space, we were asked not to bring children. However, the invitations did indicate "and guest" (or our spouse's or significant other's name, if they knew it).

One of my co-workers, a single woman, asked me if I thought it would be OK if she brought a female friend (not someone she is in a relationship with). My interpretation of the invite in this particular situation was that if one co-worker couldn't bring their teenage child due to space limitations, it wouldn't be appropriate for another to bring a casual friend. To me, it seemed to be bad manners. What do you think? -- APPRECIATION DINNER

DEAR APPRECIATION: When a host issues an invitation that says "and guest," it means the host is prepared to accommodate whomever the invitee would like to bring. According to my interpretation, it would be wrong to bring a teenager to an adults-only business-related dinner because the younger person would likely feel out of place. However, bringing a companion along would not be considered a breach of etiquette.