A “miracle” baby who was born without eyes and had half her brain removed is baffling doctors by hitting all her milestones.

Harlym Carter, who is five months old, was born with anophthalmia - a birth defect in which one or both eyes don’t develop fully.

Doctors discovered the left side of her brain was underdeveloped after Harlym had several seizures - and she had life-changing surgery to disconnect the left side of her brain from her right.

But mum Allyanna Carter, 19, says she’s almost crawling, able to sit upright and hold her head up - as well as babbling and drinking from a bottle.

Allyanna, who cares for Harlym full-time, from Salisbury, North Carolina, said: “When I was first told about Harlym’s condition, I was heartbroken. But already, doctors are extremely surprised at how she’s doing.

“I was told she’d never be able to walk or talk - but she’s nearly crawling, even though she can’t use the right side of her body.

“She’s the best baby ever - and so talkative!

"At first I automatically assumed her conditions had something to do with me - any mum is going to blame herself.

"But doctors told me there wasn't a clear reason why she was born with so many conditions - it's just genetics."

Allyana found out she was pregnant in November 2022 and had a healthy pregnancy all the way through.

She was told Harlym looked “perfectly healthy" at her 20 week scan - and had no idea about her health problems until she gave birth.

Allyana said: “I didn’t know she had any conditions during my entire pregnancy.

“I had a perfectly healthy pregnancy - no complications.

“Every pregnancy scan I was told she looked fine.”

Allyanna went into labour on July 21, 2023 and Harlym was born the following evening at 9.08pm, at the Novant Health Centre, Salisbury, weighing WHAT.

Doctors instantly took Harlym away to clean her - and pulled Allyanna’s mum, Kacie, 40, to the side.

They told her there was a possibility Harlym had been born without eyes - but couldn’t work out whether her face was just really swollen.

Kacie was told the newborn would be sent for a CT scan the following day - and she was left to break the news to Allyanna.

Allyanna said: “I wasn’t paying attention to what the doctors were telling my mum - I was just holding Harlym, having quality time with my baby.

“They told her they were planning a CT scan the next day."

At one day old, Harlym had a seizure and the CT confirmed she'd been born without eyes.

Allyanna said: "I was absolutely heartbroken. I was thinking about how she'd never be looked at as regular.

"It was very hard for me - but when she was transferred back to the NICU, I was told she had a lot of other conditions, and I thought - I'm going to love her anyway."