Over dinner tonight at home, my wife and I recounted the highs and lows of 2007. Even though there were definitely some low points, overall we had a tremendous year. We both made strides at work (I started a new job at Heritage) and we were once again fortunate to spend many memorable moments with our family and friends (including a wonderful traditional-Polish dinner on Christmas Eve with both sets of parents one week ago).

Because I love taking pictures — perhaps even more than I enjoy writing — I thought I’d recount my 10 most memorable moments of the past year. While I probably excluded a few because I didn’t capture them on film, this just about sums it up for 2007.

10. CPAC: I’ve been attending the Conservative Political Action Conference ever since I came to Washington, so when I was asked to moderate a panel this year, it was an honor to be listed among so many people I admire in the movement. To make matters even better, I debuted my new blog at CPAC, an event that transformed my life perhaps more than anything else in 2007. The best part of the conference was meeting Mitt Romney, who chatted with bloggers, and Rudy Giuliani (pictured at right), who just happened to be in the green time at the very same time I was there. Next year’s conference should be even better. I’ll be moderating another panel and presenting the Blogger of the Year award on stage.

9. Washington Nationals: This year marked my third as a 20-game ticket holder at RFK Stadium, and while the Nats certainly didn’t do much on field, they did provide for a welcome distraction during the hot and humid summer months. My friend Ehren and I can’t wait for the new stadium to open in April; after enduring RFK for three seasons, we’re definitely ready for a new place and a winning team. To close out the final year of RFK, though, I treated Missy and my friend Dom to a Mets game a few rows from the field. It turned out to be a decisive game in the Mets collapse to close out the season.

8. Mackinac Island: I spent a summer working in Traverse City at the Record-Eagle back in 2000, but I never made the two-hour trip to Mackinac Island. In finally got there in September, and I need to figure out a way to repay Michigan Republican Party Chairman Saul Anuzis for inviting me to speak at the Mackinac Leadership Conference. The conference brought together everyone involved in Michigan politics, and attracted nearly every Republican presidential candidate. I got to see Rudy, Romney, McCain and Fred up close and also sat on two panels about technology and politics. But the best part of the weekend was hanging out at the Mackinac Island bars at night with several new friends.

7. Las Vegas: Missy and I have two very different views of Sin City. I loved it and she hated it. Well, maybe that’s too simplistic. It was our first trip to Vegas, and while I was busy at the Blog World and New Media Expo, she was shopping and checking out the Strip. Even though we didn’t gamble a single penny, we discovered other parts of Vegas far better than than a casino. Our favorite was the Hoover Dam, which was just an amazing structure to see. The drive back as the sun went down was one of those near-perfect settings. If I can get Missy to go again, I would stay at the Venetian. We saw “Phantom” there on our final night in Vegas and had dinner at a restaurant next to the Venetian’s canal, where a young couple got engaged in a gondola.

6. Clarence Thomas: Shortly after I started at Heritage, Thomas’ wife, who works in our government relations department, approached me about helping convene a meeting between the U.S. Supreme Court justice and bloggers when his book was released on Oct. 1. Rather than follow the traditional route of a teleconference or one-on-one interviews, I proposed a dinner with a small group of bloggers. The justice loved the idea, and despite having it on the first day of the court’s session, he was marvelous. The book, “My Grandfather’s Son,” went on to be the No. 1 New York Times’ best-seller and millions of Americans began to recognize the real Clarence Thomas rather than one misrepresented by the media.

5. Boilermaker Weekend: In addition to Cori and Ed’s wedding (see No. 3), the other highlights of this weekend included the famous 15K itself — my father’s 30th consecutive race — and a trip to good-ole Murnane Field to see a game between the Utica Brewmasters and Rome Coppers of the now-defunct New York State League. This was our first trip home for the Boilermaker since 2005 and we certainly made the most of it. The baseball game brought back many memories to my days working for the Utica Blue Sox and the post-Boilermaker party was full of fun memories of friends and family who had just finished the race.

4. Immigration Debate: I know it seems weird to rank work on the most memorable list, but I simply can’t leave off the brouhaha that developed around President Bush’s comprehensive immigration plan. This debate literally consumed my life for the better part of a month. I remember vividly when it started — the Drudge Report linked to my May 15 report breaking news of a deal. I ended up exchanging blog posts on RedState with staffers from the White House (a first for the Bush Administration, I believe) — all part of what seemed like a never-ending stream of blog posts, columns, photos and videos about amnesty.

3. Three Weddings: It’s hard to pick a favorite because all were special. The first one, which took place on Boilermaker Weekend, involved my friend Cori (pictured with husband Ed), whom I’ve known since high school. Another over Labor Day included another long-time friend, Ehren, whom Missy has known since kindergarten; he and wife Erin are two of our closest friends in the D.C. area. The third wedding, which was by far the wildest (complete with bridesmaids dancing on the table), took place at beautiful Look Park in Northampton, Mass., on a gorgeous fall day. It was so perfect, in fact, we used a photo of us on our Christmas card this year.

2. Mount Vernon: Missy and I became Friends of Mount Vernon this year, and we made good use of our membership throughout 2007. We often visited George Washington’s home on weekends for leisurely walks on the grounds. But we also headed to Mount Vernon when friends and family came to visit us; we took both sets of parents and our long-time friends Dom and Adrianne, all on separate occasions. We ventured to the distillery and gristmill near Fort Belvoir for the first time and made our maiden voyage on the boat trip up the Potomac. Of course, Christmastime wouldn’t have been complete without Mount Vernon by Candlelight.

1. Summer Vacation: Our trip through the South in August took us to the Outer Banks of North Carolina and then Charleston, S.C., Savannah, Ga., and Appomattox, Va. I’ll never forget this vacation because of all the driving; we made good use of our time in the car, though, listening to John Berendt’s “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.” It’s hard to identify a favorite moment from the trip, but there are few things that better than hanging out on the beach. Chasing crabs at night with my nephew J.P. was a close second.

And so that’s it for 2007. I can only hope 2008 will be just as fun.