DEAR ABBY: My stepdaughter "Annie" gave my husband a photo album of his life for his 80th birthday. The album included pictures of his parents and grandparents as well as photos from his first marriage -- to Annie's mother. She included one picture of their wedding and two more of them posing as a loving couple. She included few pictures of me, even though her dad and I have been married for more than 40 of his 80 years. A photograph from our wedding was not included.

I love Annie. We get along well, and I am very hurt that she included those two pictures of the "loving couple." I feel it was inappropriate for an album she expects to be displayed in our home for family, friends and neighbors to see. I would like to ask her to reprint the album without those two pictures. Am I being unreasonable? -- STEPMOM IN THE SOUTH

DEAR STEPMOM: Because you have a good relationship with Annie, explain to her that you felt slighted when you saw the album, and why. Explain that you would like to be able to prominently display it if she would please either have it reprinted with the addition of a couple of photos of you and your husband together, or with only the wedding picture of her parents. This shouldn't be difficult to do.

DEAR ABBY: My 8-year-old nephew accidentally fell on my dog, who then reacted and snapped at him, leaving a small puncture mark on his arm. We immediately removed the dog and apologized to my nephew, who was riddled with guilt because he knew he caused it. Because it was an accident, I told my nephew it was OK.

Weeks later, my sister and I realized that my brother hasn't responded to any of our daily text messages or Facebook posts. When we see him in person, he is fine. He jokes with us and even plans to rent a storage unit with us for our grandparents' stuff. But then he ignores our text messages.

We told our mother he has been ignoring us for quite some time. He admitted to her that he's super annoyed with the whole family for not training our dog not to react when he gets hit. I now feel my brother's purposefully bad behavior is worse than the accident. What do you think? -- SIS WHO WANTS HARMONY

DEAR SIS: What happened to your nephew was an accident. Your brother's behavior is passive-aggressive and childish. I think you should ignore it and quit texting him and commenting on his Facebook posts for a while. A long while. Don't you?

DEAR ABBY: I am a divorced woman who has recently decided to jump back into the dating pool. However, five years ago, I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. I am in treatment and doing well. When and how would I tell someone I'm seeing that I have cancer? -- READY IN CALIFORNIA

DEAR READY: The time to reveal your medical diagnosis would be when the relationship becomes romantic. It would be dishonest to withhold that information from someone who is investing emotionally in you.

DEAR ABBY: My 18-year-old daughter recently broke up with her boyfriend. She caught him on the phone talking with another female, and there were other signs of his cheating as well. She's devastated, and so am I. I really liked the guy, but he obviously didn't care for my daughter or her feelings.

I told my daughter everything will be OK in time. But there are many memories of him, so it's hard for her. He sent her a message to apologize, but afterward, he blocked her. He also blocked her on Instagram. She doesn't understand why. I said maybe the other girl told him to or he doesn't want anything to do with her anymore. How can I help my daughter through this crisis? -- LOVE HURTS IN NEW YORK

DEAR LOVE HURTS: Suggest to your daughter that if she has mementoes of this romance, she should get rid of them or put them somewhere she won't see them. The same is true for music that reminds her of him. People get past these painful experiences by staying busy and not allowing themselves time to brood. Encourage her to socialize with friends and remain active. As to why this young man apologized and then blocked her, I'm guessing he apologized because he felt guilty, and then blocked her because he wants to move on.

DEAR ABBY: Our daughter and son-in-law live with us. She's painting the interior to update our 27-year-old house and wants to update the cabinets at her expense. Every time she tries to make things look better, her daddy gets angry and accuses her of trying to take over "his" house before he's dead. (This is not true.) He says if you ask anyone, they would agree with him. I say he's wrong. What do we do? -- SPRUCING UP IN INDIANA

DEAR SPRUCING UP: If your daughter and her husband wish to paint and install new cabinets only in the area of the house they occupy, your husband should contain his anger. If your daughter is trying to do more than that with the idea that at some point, she will inherit the place, your husband's anger may be justified. You are all adults. Find a way to discuss this and reach a compromise.

DEAR ABBY: My mom is starting to drive me crazy. She thinks that in order for me to consider myself a successful career woman, I need a job that has steady, consistent hours, offers health benefits and has a retirement plan.

I have a job, but because of the pandemic, my hours are temporarily staggered. I have no benefits, but I can manage that stuff (insurance and retirement) on my own. How do I make my mom understand that and stop treating me like a little kid with no plans for my future? -- AT WITS' END IN MARYLAND

DEAR AT WITS' END: It's a mother's job to worry about her children, so be patient with her. If your reassurance isn't enough to stop her comments, show her the paperwork that supports your case.

DEAR ABBY: My friend of 30 years passed away two years ago. Her husband, with whom I had a cordial relationship, has been calling me and other friends of his wife nonstop. He usually calls with irrelevant nonsense.

One time, I decided not to answer any of his many calls per day. When I finally felt guilty and answered, he was furious. He demanded to know where I was so that I was not able to answer the phone. I fabricated a story that I was out of state visiting family. Sometimes, I lie and say dinner is ready, someone is at my door or I'm just about to leave the house.

My initial reaction to his calls was that I am lucky I'm not so needy and lonely. I manage to cut the conversation to three to five minutes, and I'm never rude. This man is 80, lives by himself and has an adult child near his home. It is my unprofessional opinion that because of his many health issues and inability to drive and really care for himself, perhaps he should be in assisted living.

His constant calls are more than I can handle. Should I call his adult child or just not answer most of his calls? I think he may also be calling his children, and they may be aware of his behavior, but I don't want to upset them more than they probably are. My friends and I have done our best to talk to him, but it has reached the point that these calls are invasive. -- OVERWHELMED IN NEW JERSEY

DEAR OVERWHELMED: You would be doing everyone a favor -- yourself included -- if you made that call to inform this poor man's grown children what has been going on. Loneliness and isolation after the death of a spouse can eventually cause serious health problems, particularly in the elderly. Assisted living may be the solution he needs, not only for physical care but also for socialization. I'm glad you wrote.

DEAR ABBY: Being the least favorite is hurtful, yet my mom makes sure to convey how much she hates me every chance she gets. Mind you, she would never say that in front of my dad or my sisters. She says it standing behind me, rubbing it in. My sisters get text messages from her telling them how much she misses them. Me? I get comments like "I wish you were never born." I have tried hard to please her, but nothing has worked. Sadly, my youngest sister is rude and hates me, too. Please advise. -- UNLOVED IN TENNESSEE

DEAR UNLOVED: Unfortunately, we cannot pick our parents. Your mother's behavior is more than a little toxic, and now it has rubbed off on your little sister. This is why I am suggesting you see as little of your mother and younger sister as possible.

If you must see them, spend as little time alone with either of them as possible. Start developing relationships with people who are caring and supportive. Many people form "chosen families" when they come from families that are as dysfunctional as yours.