KING, N.C. — It's February which means it's American Heart Month.
From Feb. 7 through the 14, many are raising awareness about those with congenital heart defects.
This awareness brings us to a 3-year-old Forsyth County girl, who has a heart of joy.
Meet Charley Alverson. She's three years old and from the minute you meet her, you'll learn she loves her baby doll.
It's that kind of love that parents Lynsey and Cameron Alverson echo for their firstborn.
"She is a ball of energy," Lynsey said. "Pregnancy was normal, delivery, everything with that was normal."
What you wouldn't know is that three years ago, Charley was fighting for her life.
"Everything seemed to be okay and then between the change from labor and delivery to the mother-baby unit, we noticed just a weird skin color and she kept making kind of a gurgling sound," said Lynsey.
After a trip to Brenners Children's Hospital immediately after she was born, the doctor figured out what was wrong.
"The doctor said she has a heart defect and that they were getting ready to life-flight her to Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte. She had to have open heart surgery and she was three days old," said Lynsey.
Charley has critical CHD, which stands for congenital heart defect.
"We were scared to death, that's for sure, we didn't know anything about it, and then all of a sudden you're just thrown into it," she said. "It's like, okay, you've got this child with this defect and you've got to parent this and so it was it was very scary."
The CDC said nearly 1 in 100 babies are born with CHD and that it is the most common birth defect.
Of those with it, 1 in 4 babies need surgery within their first year of life.
"We definitely don't go a day without counting our blessings and knowing that we received a big blessing you know, with the fact that she's still here," she said.
One surgery doesn't fix it all and varies from person to person.
So far, Charley had three surgeries. Most recently, they put in a Pacemaker.
Charley is their little heart warrior.
"We feel like Charley just can't be unmatched with her little fiery spirit," she said.
The family continues to raise money, make donations, and advocate online about CHD.
Charley is inspiring her family and everyone she meets along the way.
"We try to do as much as we can to advocate for her because it is so unknown," she said. "CHD was never on our radar. It wasn't something we ever thought was going to be possible."
For Charley, she doesn't skip a beat and is doing well, but as she gets older it will be something her family keeps an eye on.
"She has touched so many lives and I know she's changed our family's life and to get to witness and see how well she's doing and again, just how she affects people and changes lives, I'm like, 'okay, that's fine,'" she said. "That can be my child and we just take it as it comes."