DR. WALLACE: I'm about to turn 21 in July, and for the past six months I've been dating a great guy who is 34! He's roughly 12.75 years older than I am, so this means that depending on our respective birthdays he will always be either 12 or 13 years older than I am, depending on what time of year it is.

I love him dearly and we get along great, but nobody in my family or circle of friends approves of my situation. I've heard all of the jokes, even the "he's robbing the cradle" one, which is stupid since in less than a month I'll be 21.

Anyhow, we are starting to get serious with each other, and this now makes me wonder if I should keep this relationship going or if I should seek to end it since my family will never approve.

And just so you know, I dated a lot in high school and even beyond before I met him. It's not like this is the first or second guy I've dated. — Facing Disapproval, via email

FACING DISAPPROVAL: Age gaps matter much more when it comes to teenagers, especially those under 18 years of age. In your case, you must first realize that it's your life and the decisions you make either way are going to impact your life, so don't rush into a decision or make a decision simply to appease a family member who may not have your insights into why this relationship is special to you.

Having said that, you might want to give your plans time to breathe as you stay in the relationship. Six months is great, but perhaps plan to date for at least a year or even a year and a half before you make permanent decisions. This will give you time to be sure this situation is right for you, for your potential husband and each of your life situations.

Another added benefit of time (assuming the extra time is congruent with your first six months together) is that your friends and relatives will have additional time to potentially adjust their attitudes as they see you happy for an extended period of time with the same relationship partner.

MY BROTHER THINKS SHE'S CRAZY

DR. WALLACE: My brother thinks our neighbor lady across the street is crazy since she is always flying various flags at her house. She has one for every occasion and holiday, no matter how remote it might be.

She also sometimes puts up decorations on her front lawn, like pumpkins and metal turkeys at Thanksgiving, and Easter eggs and an Easter Bunny from Good Friday to Easter Sunday. And when the Fourth of July rolls around, she has more flags in her yard than the rest of the whole street does combined.

Why do some older people do this? I don't ever seem to see younger couples do this. It's almost always an older single lady.

Anyway, when my mean older brother puts this neighbor down, my mother always speaks up and says something like, "She's harmless" or "She's not hurting anyone," but nobody ever seems to say why they think she does this in the first place. I'm 13 and I have no clue what's going on with her. Why do you think she does this? — Confused Kid, via email

CONFUSED KID: She likely enjoys doing this as a hobby and it gives her pleasure to have pride in her home and her yard.

There are also likely other people in your community who have the opposite viewpoint that your brother has. In fact, it's quite likely that she gets some nice compliments from some of her other neighbors and even passersby on your particular street.

People have various hobbies for many reasons. It's just my guess, but I think she has great pride in her home and yard and that she enjoys the strokes she gets when positive feedback is given to her. She also creates an opportunity to have others socialize a bit with her, and this may be one of the other benefits she receives by putting up her nice displays.

I'd also guess she not only has a great Halloween display, but I'll bet the treats she gives out at that time of year are top notch as well!

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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