The boys conclude their father must be a spy after their father goes into a tailor shop where Illya Kuryakin also enters. Despite the fact dad isn't a spy, the boys can't be shaken from this belief until Napoleon Solo pays a visit to their home.
Preoccupied with her writing career, Joan is letting other tasks pile up, including the payment of a parking fine. With the car registered in Jim's name, when he is arrested Joan is frantic to get the cash together to pay the fine.
Jim can't recall an old school friend's name, who he invites to dinner.After later remembering his name as Alvin Pratt (played by Ed Asner) it transpires that, Alvin has a deep hidden secret.
The old basement furnace breaks down on a freezing day. To add to the drama, the local plumber gets stuck inside the furnace, just as Jim's Board Chairman is about to visit.
More maintenance issues arise in the old house, with the roof leaking during heavy rain. They decide to put the house up for sale. The Nash family then have seller's remorse, when a buyer puts in an offer.
Joan believes Joel has music talent. She hires music teacher, Miss Feathers ( played by Alice Ghostley) to assess his potential . Things don't go quite as planned.
A newspaper columnist with a reputation for writing hit pieces on his subjects , wants to interview Joan. He doesn't believe the family madcap stories she writes about.
Jim brings home some student manuscripts and Joan's play gets mistakenly added to the pile. When Jim criticizes the manuscript he's reading, (actually written by one of his students ) Joan thinks he's referring to her play.
The twins befriend a hobo ( played by Burgess Meredith), and invite him home for a bath and dinner.Their father Jim, is not impressed, as he has invited his Boss to dinner.
A Building Inspector declares that the Nash house is structurally unsound and they need to vacate within 7 days. However Ed, the Handyman , disagrees and sets up a test to prove the Inspector wrong.
The twins TV hero. the 'Purple Avenger' (played by Dom De Luise) was their Mom's old school boyfriend. He is about to visit, creating a few challenges.
Joan has used a man's pen name for a story in a 'girlie' magazine. Things become complicated when the publishers decide to visit, to interview what they assume is the male writer.
Jim is someone inclined to indoor, scholarly pursuits so he's at a loss when ordered to entertain Roland Cunningham. The guest approaches each endeavor with vigor and enthusiasm sending the family into exhaustion.
The Nash clan is to be profiled on the university's TV show "At Home with the Faculty." The attention creates chaos on the home front as Joan wants to present an artificial look at their life instead of reality.
Joan and neighbor, Marge, have a fallout over who won the raffle ticket prize of a pool table. To resolve the dispute, they mutually agree to sell the pool table.
The Nash's holiday in a new caravan trailer is a disaster, so they decide to sell it. Jim's boss, Dean Carter, wants to buy it. The Nash's try to put him off with photos and stories of their trailer escapades.
Kyle and Joel try out for various roles at the community playhouse but seem to miss out on being cast. When Joel doesn't get a part he really wanted he gets depressed and his parents try to boost his ego.
The twins believe a nearby house is haunted, but discover an older man and his dog residing within. The man in question happens to be someone from Jim's past.
Joan is named ' Woman writer of the Year', by a New York newspaper, and minimizing Jim's role as a professor and drama teacher. The inevitable jealousy ensues.
During another chaotic day in the Nash household, the twins have inadvertently glued the family's tax return to their painting, which is being auctioned at a charity event. Joan frantically bids on the painting .