Robbie is crushed when he learns that Denise DuBois, a French exchange student that Robbie had hoped to marry, has accepted his friend Tom's proposal of marriage the night before.

Chip Douglas's junior high school is having an Olden Days dance and the boys are to bring their mothers, and the girls their fathers. Chip finds trouble going steady with two girls at the same time and arranges for Steve to escort his classmate's widowed mother.

To help out his Dad, Steve, Chip pretends to like the aggressive as she is pretty, daughter of a new executive woman that his dad is dating. Chip has the romantic notion that his close relationship with the daughter might help the social plans of his father.

Uncle Charley's romantic tales of adventure captivates Ernie's teacher. The pretty, middle-aged lady is fascinated by the old boy's partially-true tales of his exciting life on the high seas. Soon the ex-seacook is aghast to learn she has given up her teaching job and he is further torn when she explains her savings will buy them both a one-way ticket to Pango-Pango and asks him to marry her before they leave.

Ernie Douglas's new school friend is little Laszlo, whose gypsy family is camped outside of town. Soon the gypsies are camped on the front lawn of the Douglas home. To Steve's amazement and Uncle Charley's disgust they stage several hours of singing and dancing.

Other fathers help their sons in a school science fair, but Steve tells Ernie he's on his own. Soon his project turns to disaster when his very crudely built electric clock absolutely refuses to run. After vainly pleading that most of his classmates are getting parental help, on the day of the fair, Ernie must be forced to go to school.

The older members of the Douglas family find their social lives complicated when little Ernie decides to accompany them on all of their dates. Uncle Charley decides he must be the one to put his foot down and set the boy straight.

A genial bum Ernie brings home for dinner outrages Uncle Charley by eating everything in sight and then decides to stay the night even though he wasn't invited. Steve feels that they should let Ernie work things out for himself.