Mrs. Barksdale seems to have an uneven approach to parenting, favoring Rita over Helen and Amy as they grew up and well into adulthood. She pays for a huge wedding for Rita's daughter Erin and sends Erin to a spa in Europe during her divorce, but doesn’t even think about contributing to Daria or Quinn's college fund. Helen harbors a good deal of resentment over this sort of treatment, but Rita seems to think she deserves favor.

She once offered Daria a hundred dollars to change her hair; a similar offer was made by Daria's paternal grandmother Ruth.

Mrs. Barksdale isn't above leaning on Helen to get her to do what she wants, including having Helen handle Erin's divorce for Rita (even though Helen insists that she's not a divorce attorney). Through the use of a little flattery, she gets Helen to see her way surprisingly easily.