Mary and Sandra become contestants on ""Wheel of Fortune"" and wind up competing against each other.

Lester comes home from work sick, with the assumption that he has the flu. Using a bell that Sandra gives him, he drives Mary crazy with his demands for ""water"" and ""celery salt"" for his soup. She just assumes that he is being a big baby. Asking Brenda to watch Lester for a little while, Mary goes shopping and gets a pedicure and manicure (something she was not able to do earlier with Pearl and Rose). When she returns, Lester is being carried into an ambulance because he has appendicitis and needs to go to the hospital. Mary is worried to death because she can't see Lester in the operating room, so she sneaks in. The operation is OK.

Mary invites Sandra and her date, an eligible Congressman, to a dinner for Brenda's teacher who is attracted to the legislator.

After Sandra sees her neighbors (a married couple) interact with each other and with their daughter, Sandra decides that she wants a husband and a child. She goes out on a series of dates which end in disaster becasue of Sandra's openness about wanting to be married and have a child. She finally decides that since she can't find a suitable husband that she'll just get artificially insiminated. Mary and Rose try talk her out of it. But nothing is more of a rude awakening than when Sandra witnesses Cathy going into labor and she sees how Jim was there for her every step of the way. Then Mary and Lester talk about the night Brenda was born and how they really needed each other then. Sandra changes her mind and decides that when she does have a baby she would like to be married so she can have a husband that loves her and loves their child.

Mary is in charge of the church's charity show, and it's like divine providence when the Temptations show up at her door.

When Sandra sees a pillow that Mary is making for Brenda, she is impressed. She tells Mary that they could go into business and make lots of money. So Mary agrees to a 50/50 deal with Sandra. Eventually, things become too overwhelming for Mary as she is the one doing all the work and Sandra is the one eating expensive lunches and arranging buyers. Mary insists that she go on the next business lunch with Sandra, and the buer requests 10,000 pillows for his stores. Mary admits to him that they are a small company and they make a deal, with him as a third partner, to build a factory. He decides to build the factory in Taiwan, minus Sandra and Mary. In the end, Sandra ends up owing Mary money because she spent all of the profits.

When Brenda meets a cute boy she decides to invite him to her party Saturday night. After getting permission to actually have the party, she then hears Sandra tell a story about how when she was young and wanted to get to know a boy better, she would ""mistakenly"" tell him the wrong day of the party. Brenda tries the idea and invites Ken over for Friday night instead, hoping that when he gets there he will meet her parents and stay for dinner. But Mary and Lester decide to go out to eat and are not home when Ken arrives. Brenda decides to let him come in anyway, just to have a drink, but then Calvin shows up to drop off chairs for the party. When she tells them they need to leave, Mary and Lester arrive home and the boys hide. Mary and Lester eventually catch the boys in the house.

Calvin's dad comes to visit D.C. He and Calvin have fun going to basketball games and going to see the Blue Angels fly. Because he and his grandma have been arguing a lot lately, Calvin makes the decision to live with his dad in Iceland, thinking it would be more fun than living in D.C. Pearl is sad about it but doesn't want to show it too much. Mary throws Calvin a going away party, and after he hears what nice things every one has to say about him, he realizes that he has more ""family"" than he thought and decides to stay in D.C.

Sandra is writing a romance novel whose characters resemble the residents of 227: Marie, Rosita, and Pearlie Mae. With Mary up against Emma Johnson for the presidency of the Ladies' Auxiliary, she becomes nervous when Emma receives a copy of Sandra's book. She and the Rev. come to the Jenkins' home when Sandra drops by and gives Emma the newest chapter of her book, introducing a new character: Emily (who resembles Emma). Emma changes her mind about blabbing to the Rev. and resigns from the running for president. Mary becomes president.

Rose tries a video-dating service, but wonders if she can live up to the image Sandra creates for her.

When Mary and Rose come home from the movie theater, they see JoJo spray painting his gang tag underneath Pearl's window. Pearl hits him with her pillow, Rose grabs the spray can and accidentally sprays his shirt, and Mary grabs hims, but tries to talk sense into him. JoJo tells his mother everything that happened, while leaving out the part about him spray painting on the building. They decide to sue the ladies, and use Sandra as a witness, who was in the car on a date. When they get in court, his mother and the Judge eventually find out the truth and JoJo is made to clean up his damage. His mother apologizes to the ladies and the ladies are fined 10 cents each.

The 227 residents are worried when Calvin's free-spending new friend offers him a chance to make 50 dollars for doing what ""sounds like a Miami Vice drug deal.""

When Ms. clark uses her feminine wiles to get Brenda a part-time job at Billy Bob's Burgers, Brenda's parents are divided: she wants Brenda to study full time, while he is delighted at her new sense of responsibility.

Sandra is very upset when she learns that her mother is coming to visit. She feels as though her mother doesn't love her because she is so different from her ""normal"" siblings and family members. Sandra changes her appearance to look ""dull"" because she thinks that is what her mother willl approve of. That same weekend, a male friend of hers also comes to visit. Sandra and Mary try to keep the two from meeting. Finally Sandra admits to her mother that she thinks her mother does not love her. Her mom admits that she was just like Sandra before she got married, but calmed down so she could fit in with Sandra's father (who is a minister) and that she loves Sandra just the same because there is never a dull moment with Sandra around. Mop and her mother end up meeting anyway, and they all go dancing.

Mary and Lester go to a toy store to purchase toys for kids in the hospital. When they get there, the guy lets them in even though the sign on the door says closed. The Jenkins discover that he is attempting to rob the place. Pee Wee Herman comes into the store to purchase some things, so he is taken ""hostage"" along with Mary and Lester. Later on, Sandra comes and she is also escorted to the back of the store. The entire gang is tied up. They think of ways to escape. Their plan for Sandra to entice the robber changes courses a little when Pee Wee actually saves the day by throwing bubbles into his eyes.

The IRS audits Mary and Lester. At a diner, Mary gets into an argument with a man whose views on women are old-fashioned and clash with Mary's views. She goes as far as to insult his mother. When she and Lester are finally let in to see the auditer, it's the man Mary insulted! She knows that she and Lester are in deep trouble. Mr. Stone doubts the validity of their receipts and Lester is upset. Sandra bursts into the room because she has a date with Mr. Davis ans wants to know what's keeping him. She verfies a that a questionable dinner party was truly a party for Lester's investors and employees. Mr. Stone lets them go.

When Sandra comes to show the ladies the new ring that her boyfriend gave her, Mary notices an article in the newspaper that mentions a robbery at the same jewelry store where Sandra and her beau first admired the ring. Mary suggests that Sandra contact the police. The police put a bug in one of Sandra's earrings so they can record her convo with her boyfriend. While he is there, he shows Sandra some bracelets and neckalaces. Just then, the police come into her apt, but Justin gets away. Sandra is afraid that he may come back, so she asks her friends to keep her company and sleeps on the Jenkins' couch. The next day when she returns to her apt fearless, Justin returns with all the ladies there, but the police come in and arrest Justin. They reveal that they were surveilling Sandra's apt.

When Lester decides to rent a hotel room for the weekend, Mary plans a cruise, and the ladies plan a surprise party for Mary and Lester's Anniversary, it's all Brenda can take to keep it a secret. She decides to tell them what the other's are planning for the weekend and they all agree to the party. When Lester and Mary's parents arrive they argue about everything. Lester ends up getting sick and the party ends up being cancelled. Lester and Mary decide to take a cruise later on to celebrate the anniversary.

When Lester goes to watch the game at a friend's house, Mary and the ladies decide to have a girl's night out. They go to a club/bar where Pearl meets man. They hit it off. When Pearl comes home, she tells Mary that she and Felix are engaged. Mary seems to be the only one concerned about it, while Rose and Sandra want to throw her a bridal shower. Mary thinks that he is after Pearl's money. Pearl doesn't care what Mary thinks, and she and Felix get married any way. When she returns from her honeymoon, Mary apoligizes, but Pearl has bad news. Felix passed away. She admits to Mary that they knew that he was dying. Because she loved him and didn't want him to be lonely, they married so soon.

Calvin befriends a new kid named Ron who says that his money comes from his rich uncle. He buys Calvin a new pair of shoes and offers to take Calvin and Brenda to a Stevie Wonder Concert. Mary doesn't like the way Ron is ""trying to buy friends."" For $50, Ron gets Calvin to give someone a sealed package and in return he receives $1000 to give back to Ron. Once Pearl and Mary find out, they conclude that Ron is a drug dealer. Mary goes to talk to Ron's mother about his free spending and the fact that he is a drug dealer, but his mother refuses to believe Mary. Calvin confronts Ron about using him to deliver drugs and Ron admits that he used Calvin and all it cost him was a pair of shoes. Later that day at a drug meeting, Ron's mother shows up and tells the 227 residents that Ron was stabbed to death in a drug deal gone bad.

Upset when Brenda comes home from University Day wanting to attend Northwestern, Mary anticipates an empty nest by demanding that Lester give her a job at the construction site --and gets fired on her first day. Mary takes a job at a travel agency (with Sandra), where her boss finds her so invaluable that he wants her to accompany him on a trip. The boss comes on to Sandra, who then quits and tells Mary not to go on the trip. She goes anyway, and Sandra then tells Lester about their boss. He surprises Mary in Philadelphia and jumps to the worng conclusions when he finds a man's suit and bathrobe in Mary's closet. He finds out that Mary bought them for him as a surprise.

The Social Security office says that Pearl is dead, and the resulting protest lands Pearl, Mary and Rose in jail.