RE: WWYD...bully at playgroup
Well, I have a few thoughts.
First, I think you were totally in the right to tell the child not to hit your child since the mother wasn't there. If someone shoved you to the ground you'd say the same thing, your DD doesn't have the ability to do so, so it's up to you to be her voice and teach her that she can say "No!" when someone is harming her. It's hard to tell if the mother left because of that or if she was so embarassed and upset with her DD's behavior.
About going to playgroup, we actually took a break for about 6 months from ours because of the exact same reason. One of the oldest girls was being really mean to DD and we left with her in tears more often than not. The break really helped, and by the time we started going again DD was older (and bigger) and I think that helped. For some reason DD was the target of the other girl, and once DD was speaking up for herself (and coming to me when the other girl was being mean) it helped tons. I do keep a very close eye on her when she's around the other girl and have made in clear to Emma that when she starts being mean it's time to walk away and find someone else to play with.
It's tough, I know. I hope things work out for you.
Lisa
Emma 11/02
Adam 2/07
Their hands may be small but their feelings are just as big as ours.