DEAR MISS MANNERS: I’ve been invited to a gender reveal party, being held virtually due to COVID-19, and I’m not sure which facial expressions to bring to the event.

The expectant parents have implied that, after two daughters, they’d like a boy. So how should I react if the balloons are released and they’re expecting another girl? Do I frown and express my regrets? If it’s a boy, should I put on a wide smile and say I’m glad for them?

I’m happy to celebrate the upcoming birth, but find it uncomfortable to prioritize the child’s sex with an awkward event such as this, particularly when I know the parents’ inclinations. Unfortunately, my laptop will be capturing my face in close-up, so I need Miss Manners’ advice, including her acting skills.

GENTLE READER: If there is anything sillier than a gender reveal party, it is one given by parents who have made their wishes explicit. Miss Manners wonders what their own faces will register if they receive unwelcome information — and which of their guests will, years later, let this slip to the disappointing child.

If you must attend this event, she suggests that the “reveal” would be a good moment to try on your mask.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My daughter’s boyfriend is proposing next week, and we are planning on going to dinner with his parents afterward. How do we handle the bill? Which parents pay?

GENTLE READER: Whichever set of parents invited everyone are the hosts, and therefore responsible for the bill. But Miss Manners is hoping to hear that neither couple did; that it was the young gentleman himself who issued the dinner invitations.

That would be charming of him, indicating a desire to mark the new relationship that will affect both families. As he has confided his plans to you, such is presumably the case.

However, it would be less charming if either set of parents had told him that he should report in after such an intimate occasion. Nor should they usurp the symbolism of his being an adult who is establishing his own household. There will be plenty of occasions on which parents can entertain the new couple, but this is one in which the person who issued the crucial proposal should take charge of related events.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Out of habit, when I make a purchase, I routinely say “thank you” at the end of the transaction. It is my expectation that the person on the other end of the transaction say the same thing, and most do. But some, mostly younger people, respond with “you’re welcome.”

I am rather put-off by this. I would expect the customer to be told “thank you” even if the customer says it first. Thoughts?

GENTLE READER: Is there not enough rudeness around, that you must quibble with courtesy?

It is pleasant, but not obligatory, for cashiers and customers to thank each other. But the correct response to “Thank you” is “You are welcome.” Miss Manners is pleased that it has not been entirely replaced by “No problem.”

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.