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That’s her “I’m about to take out the shampoo and the towels and there’s nothing you can do about it” look.

How old must you be to take the dog out by yourself?

According to Charlotte, 1.

I’m happy to share dog walking responsibilities, though with all the eminently chaseable rabbits and groundhogs and deer in the vicinity, she’d better bring a 90-lb. anchor along.

After Charlotte climbed into her chair all by herself, she gave herself the round of applause she knew she deserved.

Watch Best Man Justin Evans yuck it up at Josh’s expense at his recent wedding. While the interpretive dance is what people are going to remember, “I’m not the Best Man. Just a great guy” was my favorite part of the speech. For the rest of my life, whenever appropriate, I plan to overuse that the way people use “That’s what she said.”

“I’m not a distinguished alumnus. Just a great guy.”

“I’m not the superintendent of schools. Just a great guy.”

One day, I’ll be in a conversation where that comeback makes sense. And I’ll be ready.

Charlotte had 40 of her closest friends over on Saturday to celebrate the completion of her inaugural year.

She wasn’t thrilled about the hat.

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Charlotte loves waffles but hates to see them go to waste. So when she’s had her fill, it’s only logical that she wants to share the wealth.

Or she once saw me sneak Bailey pizza crust at the table. Or grilled chicken. Or…waffles. This meal was very reminiscent of the last line of a famous public service announcement from the 1980s:

When the clock hit 4:02pm on Saturday, Charlotte successfully completed her first full year. We were up in Boston this weekend for the wedding of Joshua Ramsey Evans and Meg Joanne McGinn, and we brought Charlotte and her handlers — Ellen’s parents — with us.

Charlotte had never shown any aversion to marine life in her first 12 months, so we decided to celebrate her birthday at the New England Aquarium.

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Charlotte was in the backyard today supervising the construction of her new swingset. To help get around, she employed her trusty Radio Flyer. And she stopped for frequent ‘Hi!’ breaks.

The cable news networks can’t get past the Michael Jackson tributes, and neither can Charlotte. She’s demanding his music at every meal. “Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” is still atop her hit list.

But “Smooth Criminal” gets her grooving, too. She even gets her feet involved.

By the way, the title of this post is almost certainly a lie. I’ll be uploading videos of her reaction to me playing “Leave Me Alone” when she’s in high school.

If a political career is in Charlotte’s future, this image could be an asset. If she gravitates to the far right or far left, being pictured with Sarah Palin or Al Franken at such a young age could show up in campaign ads. Like the shot of a teenage Bill Clinton shaking hands with JFK. Unless Charlotte’s handlers decide the brief baby nudity is a bad thing. In which case, maybe this photo would be a better choice:

Charlotte English: Taming Wild Beasts Since Birth

The highlight of the 2008 installment of Independence Day Weekend was when Bailey and I were attacked — well, verbally assaulted — by a yapping dog that had jumped out of a moving convertible. We didn’t reach that level of intensity this year, but there were still a few memorable moments.

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The good people at CNN.com Live had me back today to discuss songs used by military interrogators and law enforcement officers to torture and intimidate. We had some laughs.