Daddy's Girl

For those of you who know me it may come as a big shock that I am a Daddy's girl through and through. In the picture here that is (from left to right) my sister Teresa, my Daddy and me when I went back home for Father's Day. My father was very strict on us growing up. My mother and he divorced when I was 6 and I had two extremes when it came to parents. Mom was very relaxed, let me pretty much do what I wanted. Dad on the other hand ruled us with an iron fist. He only had to spank me twice in my life. Both when I was very young. But to hear my father raise his voice at me, to this day can bring me to tears.

My fondest memories of my father:

• Going to the city dump and then Dairy Queen for an ice cream every Saturday


• Dancin in the garage to the oldies when he would work on his cars


• Camping (duh)


• Flying in his plane


• Going to the lumber mill he worked at everyday with mom for lunch and riding the forklift


• Flannel shirts and Levi jeans (enough said)


• Coffee and toast in the morning before he went to work


• Bedtime games (Tickatoos, Round Moon, Johnny Fireman)

I can still remember climbing out of bed at 3am in the morning to walk into the kitchen and see my big, strong Daddy standing there in his flannel shirt with a white t-shirt underneath and his Levi jeans. My little bare feet were always cold as I crawled into his lap to eat our toast and drink coffee. I would pull his over sized t-shirt that I always wore to bed over my knees and he would wrap his arms around me to warm me. Before he left for work he would carry me back to my room and tuck me back into bed.

I am blessed to have a father as wonderful as mine. He was the ideal man, strong, brave (the great spider slayer), smart, handsome (this became a problem with my friends in high school) and very funny! I measure every man that enters my life against my father. I have yet to meet one who measures up. I love you Daddy. Love your Peachy Fry

The Old Waterin Hole....With A New Age Attitude

I can remember when I was a child and my Uncle would take me up to his favorite little bar with him. I loved the smell of stale beer and cigarettes, peanuts on the floor and every old timer in there wanted to hand me a dollar or two. It was a tiny place where everybody knew everyone else by name and you felt safe.

Nowadays these little gems are few and far between. In a world overrun by large, corporate owed bars that are the size of football stadiums, finding a hole in the wall waterin hole is considered a real accomplishment. These are not for the meat-seekers, that is, those who are out looking to get laid. These are not for the men who want to act like cavemen and fight to prove their prowess. And they are not for the women looking to have drinks bought for them all night long.

An old waterin hole is where you go to talk to friends, shoot pool, relax and avoid the social interactions forced upon you at the larger bars. Do we have a good time...yes. Do we get a little crazy on a Friday night...hell yes! The difference being that we know everyone we are with, we know that no one will try to take advantage of us and that someone will drive us home at the end of the night if we need. Fights almost never happen unless an outsider enters and is rude or inconsiderate.

The days of old have shifted slightly though in the case of women in the bars. When my Uncle would take me you would rarely see a woman there, muchless a group of women unless there were men there with them. But times have changed and women have invaded man's secret hiding place and in some cases even taken them over (although we are always willing to share).

In the end I will take my little home away from home and keep it safe from the invasion of the meat-seekers and cavemen of the corporate bars. It's mine I say and you can't have it. I just hope there are still some left when my children are old enough to enjoy them.

~Darlin~

Children and Porn

This weekend when I was sittin at the pool with the kids my daughter's boyfriend's mom came down and we started talking. She asked me not judge her and revealed to me that since her son has been very curious about sex lately and is apparently bombarding her with questions she decided to let him watch a porn video. HE IS 12!!!

Forget not judging her...IS SHE CRAZY?? Am I being judgemental to say that her son is no longer allowed to date my daughter? Because that was the first thing I did say. I have had two daughters asking me about sex since they were about 8 years old and never once did I think, "I'll just slap in a porno and hope that explains it."

I consider myself a pretty open minded mom, but to allow a 12 year-old child to view porn to me is lunacy. What happened to parents actually talking to their children? I continually talk to my daughters, and now my son about sex, dating and everything else they get shoved in their faces on a daily basis. But we talk...they are allowed to ask any question they want and I am proud to day that they feel comfortable enough to ask some pretty...um... shall we say "adult" questions. Here are some examples:

"What is a donkey show?"

"Mom why would a girl want to suck on a boy's d*ck?"

"How come if boobies are for babies to eat boys always go crazy over them?"

"What is masturbation?"

"Why would someone masturbate?"

"Why do people have sex like dogs?" (after hearing something about doggie-style)

These are just a few but I hope it shows how comfortable my children are with talking to me about these types of things. I just cannot comprehend answering these questions by handing my child a porn tape, lotion and a towel (in a boy's case).

If I am being closed minded here I would love to hear it but I will stick by my opinion that this is just bad, lazy parenting.

~Darlin~