Just days after being shot in the head while sitting in her stroller at a park on Staten Island, 21 month old Samaya Bailey lost her left eye, and is now recovering at a family members home, where they feel safe.
"She's a miracle baby," said Jenny Chambers.
Tearful, thankful prayers despite the lingering pain.
The spot where the bullet pierced the 21-month-old's temple and the tiny exit wound on the bridge of her nose are now covered in stitches.
The bandages once covering the eye she lost are now gone.
Yet, all her family sees is a perfectly gorgeous child.
"She's good. She's beautiful, she's perfect," says her mother, Stephanie Mahoney.
It is a beauty her mother, Stephanie Mahoney feared she'd never see after she got the phone call last Wednesday that a stray bullet almost took her baby's life.
"I was thinking she might not make it the whole ride to the hospital," adds Mahoney.
It is a story still being recounted by Samyah's 4-year-old sister who witnessed the bloody scene but who now joins in her family's celebration.
"I'm happy," said Jada Bailey.
And for a toddler like any other who loves Elmo and who clings to her mother's side more than ever, this is the start of a long but miraculous recovery.
