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Growing up as an athlete, I started skating very young. My parents didn't know anything about the sport, so they went with the flow. I had two great coaches who gave great advice and gave guidelines for my parents. My parents let the coaches dictate what was going on on the ice.

I begged my mom to let me start skating.

My parents never pressured me to skate. They always said I could quit if I wanted to. They only expected me to skate when they had already paid for the expensive lessons. But, otherwise they said I could do what I wanted to do.

Skating, I think I was told once, is the second most expensive sport. My family's had to refinance three times - they really want to do anything that it takes for my dreams to come true. I hope to one day have a family that I can do that for and kind of give back in the same way that my family gave to me.

We grew up very poor, and I hated being poor. I was the oldest of five kids, and I never got a pair of skates until I was nine. It was very difficult to get an education back then and play junior hockey.

Some skaters, they live for skating, and they are home-schooled. I'm very lucky my parents let me go to school and have a normal life.

My parents were of the opinion, because they had started skating very young, that you should have something that you do that you care about, because it structures your life as you're growing up.

I burnt myself out of skating. I was ready to focus on being a mom.