I had wanted to skate since as long as I could remember... I remember having roller skates and trying to figure out how to spin like the skaters on TV. I was always told no, I couldn't skate, with the reasons being "it's too expensive" and "I don't want you involved in highly competitive sports". (neither of which are fundamentally true - I spent more on gymnastics for my daughter when she did that, and competitions are optional).
When I was 13 though, I went to school across the street from the rink. A friend of mine skated recreationally and convinced me to get a pair of used skates so I could go skate with her after school. "Don't worry mom, I'm not asking for lessons, I'm just having fun" was my excuse at the time, and she went along with it. Within just a few months I was hooked - for my birthday my dad got me my first "real" pair of skates and also agreed to pay for lessons... she HATED the idea, so I kept skating, despite her reservations about it. (my friend did not keep skating though - we went to different schools the next year and didn't really keep in touch). Eventually she started to come around when she realized that apart from the cost of skates, taking classes and private lessons didn't need to be as insanely expensive as she had though.
Despite a serious injury at 15, I skated seriously until I was 17, at which point I stopped taking lessons (beginning with minor falling out with my coach, then she was forced to relocate across the state when new rink management wouldn't offer her a coaching contract.. and I just never found a replacement). I continued to skate increasingly more part time until I was 19 when I got pregnant with my oldest and going to school, working, and skating were just too much to keep up with
I wish I had kept skating through that pregnancy and beyond, but it just didn't seem feasible. I started back almost 3 years ago a few months after my mom retired, but I was only skating once a week or so for almost a year. I started skating regularly about 2 years ago (and taking lessons again), and I'm more than hooked now