I noticed that they put the little girl Michelle in a dress (with lace trim!). She was played by Ellen Hamilton Latzen who had been the little girl in the movie "Fatal Attraction" that same year.

Latzen got a lot of remarks in Fatal Attraction reviews about her "boyish" looks and pixie haircut.

Is that why the Family Ties costume department put her guest character in a dress? (they also put a flower in her hair).