Alissa Krinsky
TVNewser Contributor

"It's been great, hard, challenging, a whirlwind," Meredith Vieira says about her freshman year as co-anchor of Today.

Her first anniversary was celebrated yesterday, on-air, during a show Vieira says always goes at lightning speed. "One minute you're with Hillary Clinton, then you're with Martha Stewart, and next a dog balancing a glass on his nose — that's the joy of the show."

The job brings her back to network news, in a career that has taken her from local television to 60 Minutes to The View. "It (had been) nine years since (I'd) done journalism. It's been great, it's been a bit like getting back on a bicycle — it's been a bit wobbly at times — but I've enjoyed getting back into news."

She's hooked on a format that features live interviews with every newsmaker imaginable. "There's a whole other skill set here, and I'm stretching again. It's also cool to be fifty-something and realize there's still a lot to learn. That's a good feeling. It's fun."

And challenging. Vieira's goal for year two is "to figure out how to budget my time better and make a little more time for myself every day. I think that's the hardest thing."

It's something she sees Matt Lauer, a veteran of Today life, do very well. "He's learned how to do this job and not lose himself... He's nice. I keep wishing he'd be a real rat," she says with a smile in her voice, "but he's not."

And what about another much-discussed subject, her future plans? According to Vieira, her professional life always has, and always will, depend on the needs and wishes of her family. "Quality of life is extremely important, and my family is the number one factor."

In fact, she can see, in the distant future, the possibility of not working all, and retiring to "do something with kids" — e.g., volunteer work &mdash or "I could also see traveling with Richard and visiting grandchildren".

In the meantime, she continues her breakneck-speed schedule, which includes hosting Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Vieira loves game shows; her all-time favorites are Password, Match Game, and I've Got a Secret. Her kids enjoy The Price is Right. Yes, even more than Millionaire, she laughingly admits.

Game show, news show, family, self. Meredith Vieira crams a lot into her days, and she's "starting to get it", she says of her new, Today-inclusive life. And she's ready for her sophomore year.