In The Absence of Middle Management

I realize now that I should have paid closer attention to Ev when, on the day of her departure, she looked me square in the eye and cryptically said, " Keep my bedroom door closed. No, keep ALL the doors up there closed". " I will", I said.

Fast forward to today. I was getting ready to leave the house. I was changing and since Liam has taken an un-Holy and boyish interest in my, well you all know what boys like, I closed my door. Ev's door remains closed as per her instructions but really, keep ALL doors closed. Humph. Whatever.
Liam had been "hi-yah-ing" about on his stick pony and I thought I would take advantage of his interest and change.
ok.
Forty-five seconds later the hi-yah-ing dies off and I hear the faint splish splosh of water. I yell, "Liam you better get out of that bathroom!!"- in my best Mom's Voice- and before the words are even out of my mouth. No they were literally still floating in the air above my head. I hear this " Crash!", that's the unmistakeable sound of the toilet lid being slammed down unmercilessly. That sound is followed quickly by three or four fast breath sounds and foot steps beating feet out of the bathroom, also you can hear the end of the pony stick hitting every door, door frame and wall in between the bathroom and Liam's room.

I open my bedroom door and see Liam walking non-chalantly out of his bedroom and his pony laying in there next to the corner where we keep it. Nowhere near Liam.

Then I step in a puddle of water.

Then I look into the bathroom.

Horror sets in. Because I thought he was playing in the cat's bowl.

But I was wrong. It was the toilet.

"LLLLLEEEEEEUUUUMMMMMM!!!!!" I yell.

He sort of saunters over with his face turned down and he's making these pleasing little coo's and such. I ask him what happened and he sort of tries to walk away. I bring him back and I say "Did you play in this toilet water?!' and...I have him. He nods his little head once. And well, punishment befalls him.

And he has to sit and contemplate his crime, nearly naked because everything he was wearing was soaked in toilet water. I start to clean. And I wonder. How could all of this water gotten out of the toilet? I mean it was everywhere. I realize that his bow is in there and I think, well, maybe he waggled this around in there. Nope it was bone dry.
Then I remember the pony sounds. And a flash of the pony's horrified expression as it lay there just a few moments ago hits my brain.
And I know.
It was the pony.

I walk in slow motion over to the poor thing.

It is soaked entirely and drippingly up to it's eyeballs in toilet water.

I guess the take away here is this: You can lead your stick pony to the toilet but you can't make him drink.

Shocked. Shocked he was to discover that the toilet is off limits as a watering trough.

"Oh Dear God. Your girl child never did that to me!" 

"I told you he was a savage. I NEVER play in this thing. I only drink out of it"

"What have I done?!?!

"Well, partner, what do you want to do tomorrow?"