We achieved our childhood dream. Here are our thoughts about it.

Every little girl who starts curling is told by her parents, coaches, and community members that success in this sport means making it to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Every February brought the excitement of turning on the TV and watching your favourite players compete. If you were really lucky, your parents might even take you to a game or two to experience the excitement firsthand.

We would watch and dream about the day it would be us down on that ice, sliding over the hearts. Every curling camp seemed to include a goal-setting workshop, and every player had the same ultimate outcome goal written across the top of the page: “Scotties Tournament of Hearts.”

Fast forward 10–20 years, and we achieved exactly that.

On January 11, 2026, we dominated the provincial final and earned the right to represent Ontario at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Mississauga. It was extra special because we were the home team, just a short drive from so many of our family members, friends, and supporters.

The experience was an absolute whirlwind. Huge crowds. Games broadcast live on TSN. Autograph sessions, media interviews, Q&As, pictures—and then even more pictures. It was a dream come true: finally being the players on the ice instead of the fans in the stands.

We are immensely grateful for the opportunity and recognize how rare it is to compete on a stage like that. Unfortunately, not everyone gets the chance to achieve their childhood sports dreams. With that in mind, we took some time to reflect on the experience and wanted to share a few things we learned along the way.

1. Achievement feels great, but it's less life-changing than you expect.

You don't become a better version of yourself the moment you achieve your goal. It was you who put in the work to get there, and it's the same you who walks away from it. You don't need to become someone different to achieve the things you want most.

2. The goal isn't the only good part—the process is just as sweet.

Half the joy came from the work itself. We set small goals along the way and got to pursue them together. No amount of success can replace the laughs, tears, grit, and gratitude you experience with teammates throughout the journey.

3. Community matters more than you think.

No matter how talented you are, you'll always be stronger with a community behind you. Build your village, and put effort into being a villager yourself. Every win belongs to the community, not just the individual.

4. Failure can be the reason for success.

We didn't start our season the way we hoped, and we weren't the favourites heading into our qualification events. But we made a commitment to approach the game with curiosity. That mindset allowed us to learn from our weaknesses and grow from our setbacks better than our competition did.

The lessons from those failures ultimately helped us improve more than many of the victories along the way.

5. Achieving a goal is proof that you can do it.

Deep down, you often know all along that you're capable. Achieving the goal doesn't necessarily tell you something new—it simply provides evidence of what you've already believed about yourself.