DEAR MISS MANNERS: My friend has coached our daughter’s soccer team for years. At the end of each season, he graciously hosts a much-anticipated afternoon barbecue for the girls and their parents.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My friend has coached our daughter’s soccer team for years. At the end of each season, he graciously hosts a much-anticipated afternoon barbecue for the girls and their parents.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My husband and I have taken our grown children, their children and friends on several nice vacations. We ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: When my children were growing up, we were close friends with another family. Both families taught the children old-fashioned respect for their elders and expected them to call ...

I am the stepmother to two great young men. Their father and I have been together since they were teenagers. When they were young, it was a difficult but necessary position for me to be in when it ...

Unlike Miss Manners’ preferred solution, which you mention, your proposed response also forfeits the sympathy of everyone in ...