DEAR MISS MANNERS: OK, so let's get down to business. There's this boy at school that I really like. The problem (among others) is that I'm a sophomore and he's a senior.

Don't get me wrong; we are actually good friends because of theater. But I'm afraid he'll only think of me as a little sister. Plus, I suspect he likes a junior at our school. He's very popular, kind and funny, but he was not embarrassed to be friends with me even when I was a freshman.

Do you have any tips or ideas on how I can become closer to him or something before the end of the year? Maybe how I can tell him how I feel about him without ruining everything? That's what I'm worried about -- him going away to college before I get the chance (or bravery) to tell him how I feel about him.

GENTLE READER: While ever an enthusiast of romance, there is a reason that Miss Manners favors the 19th-century kind. Yes, its plots can be slow-moving, but wrestling with feelings until one is certain of their reciprocation makes for far less heartbreak and regret.

However, since you have common interests, there is no reason that you cannot ask this young man for coffee to talk about theater -- or invite him to see a show. If he agrees, and does not invite a gaggle of friends along, you have fair indication that there might be interest.

But even if that turns out not to be true, Miss Manners assures you that a two-year gap will soon seem insignificant -- and little sister vibes have a way of changing. If his college is somewhere you'd genuinely be interested in exploring, you can always go visit -- and remind him of what he left behind.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I'm the mom of two very young kids. They are often invited to birthday parties and are too young to be dropped off and left without a parent.

Several of these parties are held at restaurants at lunchtime, and I always find that food is provided for the kids but none is provided for the adults. Attending parents must either abstain from eating or purchase their own meals.

I find this to be rude on the host's part. My husband finds nothing wrong with it. Since we live on a tight budget, I've decided to no longer accept invitations for at-restaurant parties. Am I expecting something from the host that I shouldn't?

GENTLE READER: While eating leftovers from children's plates is a habit best left at home, these hosts seem to have given you little alternative. Miss Manners assures you that requiring attendance for a meal that is only being served to some of the guests is rude. Since toddlers probably couldn't care less about food as a means of entertainment, making it a central focus point seems nonsensical. She therefore permits you to forgo these festivities with a clear conscience. Send your husband to them instead.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I was asked by a friend if I wanted to go out to dinner to celebrate my 29th birthday. She said, "My treat," and asked if I was comfortable with a few more mutual friends being invited along.

I had no problems with the invite or the company. We had dinner and were all standing to go and pay when she asked our other friends, "So who's buying the birthday girl's dinner?"

I thought she was joking, so I laughed and motioned to her, but she gave every other person in the company a pointed look. I was completely embarrassed. If there was a problem with money or such, I would have happily paid for my own meal, but since the invite had included "my treat," I was completely thrown by this direct attempt to get other people to contribute to buying my meal. I was also confused, since just two months prior, I had treated her to a meal for her birthday.

Should I have expected this, or am I correct in assuming that this was in bad taste?

GENTLE READER: It was particularly egregious, as it implied that you had something to do with this ungracious plot.

Miss Manners hopes that you do not find yourself in this situation again, but if you do, she authorizes you to raise your own hand when asked for volunteers to pay. This will surely shame the host and other guests, if not into paying, at least into realizing that you were collectively duped.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Please explain the rules of invitations posted on social media for someone who has never belonged and does not intend to join.

There has been a rash of my family members having parties to which I am not personally invited and then berating me for not being there. And this is even though no one spoke to me, there were no invitations sent in the mail and no one called me.

I have had the same phone number for 18 years and the same address for 19 years. I am not hard to get hold of.

My response has been a very mild, "Thank you for the information, and I am sorry I did not know about the event." What else can I say except to remind people I'm not on any social media, but always answer my phone?

GENTLE READER: Short of resigning yourself to a social life that includes only the people who specifically want to be around you (not necessarily a terrible fate), there is little you can do before the fact to elicit an invitation.

With any luck, however, you soon may see the problem solve itself. Miss Manners has noticed that even steadfast users of social media have seen the limitations of mass communication, particularly when it comes to in-person events. No doubt they are witnessing their invitations yield parties that are too often overwhelmingly large -- or as in your case, unexpectedly small.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My daughter expressed her desire to have as few children at her wedding as possible. She has a flower girl, so naturally this 4-year-old will be attending, and she also told the groom's out-of-town brothers that they may bring their young boys. A groomsman's wife just delivered, and she told them to please bring their infant child, understanding that leaving a 1-month-old with a sitter may not work out so well.

Now a member of the bridal party apparently needs to bring her 1-year-old child because she doesn't go anywhere without her, so my daughter figured if she said the groomsman could bring his newborn, then in all fairness, she needs to allow her bridesmaid to bring her toddler.

She has had a few negative responses from people who shared that they "can't afford a sitter" or "never leave their child with anyone other than family," and she smiles and says, "I hope it works out, as we want you to be able to share in this day with us."

Miss Manners, what are we to do if people show up with their children? It is clearly marked on the invite as to how many are invited from their household, but apparently no one reads this anymore or RSVPs. It is bad enough when they do not RSVP, and then when they bring additional people who aren't invited, it becomes a situation that is difficult to navigate.

GENTLE READER: Having given up on the hope that everyone will enjoy a wedding these days, Miss Manners finds herself setting a lesser goal of offending the smallest number of people possible. Even this will be a difficult standard to meet if parents struggle to find babysitters and then find themselves with a flower girl, two (or more?) nephews-in-law, a mother with infant and a 1-year-old. (Did we miss anyone?)

Your daughter may exclude all children from the event, but, for understandable reasons, she did not do so. It is time either to hire a babysitter and a quiet room somewhere away from the main ceremony, or to bribe one of the older (preferably trustworthy) children to mind the younger ones.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: A young woman slammed a flight attendant for referring to her as "miss" when her card read "Dr." Some people praised her for standing up to the man; others said she was a crazy attention-seeker. What are Miss Manners' thoughts on this issue?

GENTLE READER: That even if the young woman was wearing a name tag that prominently displayed her title, it would be hard to read while serving drinks in the aisle of an airplane in flight. Inferring an insult without reason to think one has been intended is unmannerly. And -- Miss Manners reserves the most important point for last -- it is foolish to antagonize the person who will be feeding you.

(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)