2008 [is] the greatest political story of my lifetime,” says Norah O’Donnell, chief Washington correspondent for MSNBC and contributing correspondent to NBC’s Today Show. “It [is] any political reporter’s dream to be involved in a story like this. It has been historic: [First] a woman running, and then an African American on one ticket and a woman as VP on the other.”

O'Donnell is no stranger to reporting Washington politics. She started her career as a print reporter for the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call, followed by a leap to television as a news analyst and contributor for MSNBC and NBC News in 1999, where she's been since. In other words, she's seen her share of election coverage.

But for O'Donnell, 34, reporting this year represents a welcome return to her journalistic roots covering the campaign trail. As a staff writer for Roll Call, "I covered House and Senate campaigns, which is where, from the ground up, I cut my teeth on political coverage," she says. "That's the best way to learn about politics—how to run a House or a Senate campaign, walking the halls of Congress and getting to know a lot of the forces up on Capitol Hill. That was really the best training ground."

San Antonio native O'Donnell, the daughter of a career Army doctor and a stay-at-home mother of four, met her husband, future D.C. restaurateur Geoff Tracy, now of Chef Geoff's fame, on their first day of class at Georgetown University. They dated through all four years of college. "We've been together 17 years and married for seven," she says.

In the years immediately following their 1995 graduation, while Tracy was learning his trade at the Culinary Institute of America, O'Donnell was learning hers. In 2000, she covered the Republican primaries, the Republican and Democratic conventions, the Florida recount battle and the inauguration.

But with the election now upon us, it's 2008 that's become the most interesting year in O'Donnell's career to date. "John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin … was a brilliant political move that transformed the Republican Party and closed the enthusiasm gap," she says. "She energized McCain's whole campaign and attracted a whole new set of voters that may not have been excited about the race. Just as it's great that the Democrats have an African American on the ticket, it's great that the Republicans have a woman on theirs. Both parties embraced and embodied the 'change' issue. It's been a great, great year for politics."

For O'Donnell, it was also a great year personally. Daughter Riley arrived in July, joining twins Henry and Grace, who were born in May 2007. In February, Tim Russert announced O'Donnell's pregnancy on his MSNBC show, saying, "She has Henry and she has Grace. Thirteen months … that's an Irish triplet." Off camera, the newsman mentioned that he'd always liked the name Riley. "I went home that night and told my husband," says O'Donnell. "He said, 'Riley! That's a great Irish name, and a great name for our baby.'" Noting that the late Russert "really loved babies and children," O'Donnell says, "I'm just sorry we never got the chance to tell Tim we'd chosen that name."

With a full work schedule stretching well into the foreseeable future, and with a husband and three infants at home, O'Donnell has a lot on her plate. But she seems to thrive on challenges: While juggling marriage, motherhood and her career in television, she managed to earn her master's degree from Georgetown.

"Now one of my main challenges is learning to balance work and family, a challenge many women face today," she says. "I'm in a fast-moving field, trying to be on top of the news every day, but I also have to make sure I spend enough time with my children. Russert was a great role model in how to balance work and family. … Leaving my 8-week-old baby at home to cover the conventions was very difficult. But I love my job and I have a supportive family, so I'm blessed."

For O'Donnell, McCain's choice this summer of Palin, a 44-year-old mother of five, as a running mate hit close to home, and "reopened the nationwide debate about work and family and how to balance them, an issue that women feel very strongly about. It's a good debate to have."

As excited as she's been for 2008, O'Donnell is equally looking forward to the new year. "The inauguration of a new president is so significant," she says. "Not only because [it] sets the tone for a new administration, but also because we have the first 100 days of [his] presidency, where key decisions will be made about the cabinet, their focus and their legislative agenda."

And MSNBC will be front and center covering the inauguration, O'Donnell says.

"We've done an enormous amount of political coverage, and not just with the unprecedented primary fight between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, but with both conventions where we went wall-to-wall. We harnessed the resources of all the great NBC political correspondents—Andrea Mitchell, Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw, Chuck Todd. And at the inauguration you're going to see the same thing, MSNBC really capitalizing on all the strengths of NBC."

When the new president does get inaugurated, you can count on O'Donnell being there, too. "I'll be doing what I did at the conventions, hosting my show and the panel in prime-time coverage," she says. "David Gregory is the main anchor on election night prime-time coverage, and I'll play a major role, as the one doing the exit polls or leading the panel of experts."

And don't expect O'Donnell to consider a move anytime soon. Her passion for politics all but guarantees that she'll remain based in Washington, which suits her just fine. "I think Washington is the most beautiful city," she says. "There's nothing better than flying in from New York on the shuttle and seeing the monuments—the Jefferson, the Washington and the Lincoln—and the Potomac River. I think New York is great, but because of my love for politics, for me Washington is the perfect fit."

So, what more does 2008 have in store? The political junkie turned network star simply says, "Stay tuned."