Shot mum's family living a nightmare

Samantha Henderson wanted the very best for her daughter. Photo / Supplied

Samantha Henderson was a "natural-born mum".

But on the day her baby girl was taking her first steps - watched by proud grandparents - she was shot in the face by her boyfriend as he posed for photos with a loaded gun.

Last week in the North Shore District Court, Justin Paul Goldstone, 21, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and unlawful possession of a pistol in relation to the Warkworth shooting in December.

He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment but may avoid jail - Judge David McNaughton ordered a probation report to explore options such as home detention.

Goldstone told police the shooting was an accident and he believed that his finger was outside the trigger guard when he pointed the gun at the camera.

He drove Ms Henderson to a medical centre, but the 20-year-old could not be saved.

Nearly three months on, her parents, Rachel and Dave Beavan, say life is like a nightmare they cannot wake up from.

"The whole family is still in that state of 'it's not real'. It doesn't feel real," Mrs Beavan said from their Rodney home where the baby now lives. "You just try to push everything aside just so you can get through the day because otherwise you wouldn't."

This is the first time the Beavans have spoken out since the shooting, paying tribute to their "gorgeous" daughter while her 13-month-old "Booga" or "Princess" chased a chewed biscuit around the kitchen.

"My daughter was a natural-born mum. She took to it like a duck does to water," Mrs Beavan said. "She just adored that baby, I mean adored her."

Although her pregnancy was unplanned, the young mum could not wait for her child to arrive.

In a journal packed with scrawled notes, milestones and ultrasound photo, Ms Henderson counted down the days till her due date.

"Waiting for you is like waiting for your birthday or Xmas when you're a kid," she wrote to her unborn baby.

At 31 weeks she wrote: "Waiting to see you just gets harder, I can't wait, you move around so much you're perfect 9 weeks is such a long time."

One of six siblings, Ms Henderson wanted her daughter to have everything in life that she missed out on.

"She didn't want her to have paru [dirty] clothes or shoes or hair or anything that kids could pick on," Mrs Beavan said, smiling.

The toddler loved dancing so her mum wanted to get her lessons.

Ms Henderson met Goldstone when she was 2 months pregnant and they moved to Warkworth last March.

Money was scarce, with no solid income. Ms Henderson sometimes phoned home for help, but she would have done anything for her child, Mrs Beavan said.

She and her daughter were "best mates" and talked about everything, but she did not know Goldstone had guns. "If I had known he had a gun ..." Mrs Beavan said, shaking her head. "That's probably why I wasn't told, put it that way."

The Beavans say they have been to hell and back and just want justice for their daughter. But nothing will bring her back.

"If he gets sentenced for two, or four, or 100 years, it's not going to make up for what he's done ... ever," Mrs Beavan said.

Their only comfort is the baby girl - a "mini me" version of Samantha.