Donald Trump didn't actually kick a baby out of a rally this week in Virginia, according to the eyewitness report of a journalist sitting nearby and the mother of the baby herself.

In a widely-circulated video that spurred headlines criticizing the GOP nominee, Trump was seen saying first that he loved the baby who had begun to cry during his rally, then just a minute later saying that the mother should "get the baby out of here."

"I think she really believed me that I love having a baby crying while I'm speaking," Trump said.

But Daniel Dale, a reporter for the Toronto Star sitting behind the crying baby in question, said the mother was never asked to leave and that the entire episode was Trump's sense of humor being blown out of proportion.

The mother was already on her way out when Trump made his second statement.

"One minute later, though, the baby began to cry again. This time, the mother quickly decided to take the baby out of the room. Trump, looking in our direction, appeared to notice that she was on her way to the exit," Dale wrote.

"To my eyes, it certainly was not an ejection — it was an unusually barbed endorsement of the mother's own decision to depart," he continued.

He also noted that the mother and her child returned to their seats after a short time, with the baby quieted and sucking on a pacifier.

Byron York, the chief political correspondent for the Washington Examiner, was also in the room, across the room in an area reserved for press.

"It was obvious, not just to reporters, but to everyone in the room, that Trump was treating the situation humorously," York said. "I've covered Trump rallies in 10 states and have seen a lot of people removed. This was not that."

The mother, Devan Ebert, also told the Washington Post that the situation did not play out as the media had reported.

"The media did in fact blow this entire situation out of proportion," she said. "I'm not looking to make it into anything bigger. All I'm hoping is that Trump personally is aware that I am in agreement with him and stand by the fact that I was never kicked out of the rally."

She said it was "blatantly obvious he was joking" when asking the baby to leave the rally.