When Ray's "free" time goes to coaching his basketball team in preparation for the Pizza League championships, he is reminded by Debra that their kids are growing up fast and he's missing precious time with them. When Robert is forced out as captain of Nemo's basketball team, Ray gets the title and the opportunity to lead his team to victory. Meanwhile, Frank and Marie are upset with Ray for de-throning Robert as captain, and feeling guilty Ray begs Robert to re-join the team.

Ray discovers, after many years, that the autographed Mickey Mantle ball he got as a kid from his father isn't authentic. Feeling hurt by the fact that his father was not truthful about the ball, Ray decides he's going to tell Ally the truth about Santa Claus. But when two familiar looking Santas unexpectedly show up at his house to surprise Ally, she's even more confused – about the truth.

Ray is devastated when he discovers his family lied to him about his television debut on a sports chat show. When he gets a second chance to appear on the show, his family decides it's time they gave him some pointers on how to correct his awkwardness with certain words. While Ray tries his best to remember his family's advice, his guest appearance turns out to be even more disastrous than the debut.

After Debra reads a newspaper article about people who enjoy being at work more than being at home, she convinces Ray to set up an office in their house.

Ray, feeling guilty about only getting his dad a card for his 65th birthday, makes up for it by buying him a fancy and expensive aquarium just like the one he always admired in the Chinese restaurant. At first Frank adores the gift, but after one of the fish dies, he starts to hate it. Ray thinks it must be because the fish's demise reminded his dad of his own mortality - until he finds out the real reason and learns an important lesson about father-son relationships.

When Marie crashes and ruins her Tupperware party, Debra decides that she's had just about enough of her mother-in-law's constant interference. She takes pen to paper and writes a letter to her mother-in-law, telling her to stop intruding into her life. Horrified by the problems that this letter might trigger, Ray does everything in his power to intercept the offending document – but he fails. Surprisingly, the family discovers that honesty really may be the best policy.

All Ray wants for Christmas is a little loving from his wife and he's willing to try anything and everything to have his holiday wish come true. Ray has tried just about everything to get Debra "in the mood" and his dream comes true when she finally falls victim to his boyish charm on Christmas morning. The problem? At the very moment that he gives her the shivers, his entire family is working their way into the house for Eggs Florentine and gift unwrapping. But where there's a will, there's a way – and Raymond is determined to get what he wants from Santa this year.

When Raymond takes over the family checkbook to prove to Debra how "easy it can be" to balance it, he discovers he is no accountant. After he quickly runs out of money and starts bouncing checks, he tries to hide the truth from Debra and winds up entangled in a mess of lies, two fake checkbooks and a large loan from his brother.

Ray saa kuulla kutistuneensa pari senttiä, joka aiheuttaa hänelle keski-iän kriisin. Hän päättää tehdä listan unelmistaan ja tavoitteistaan. Marie puolestaan suuttuu Frankille, joka on rahanhimossaan mennyt myymään puolet heidän yhteisestä hautapaikastaan.

After Raymond asks Debra why she ever married him, they take a walk back in time to the very beginning of it all. Raymond is very, very nervous. He's about to propose to his lovely girlfriend Debra and nothing is going right. But when he finally pops the big question, she accepts, the families celebrate, and all is well. At least for five minutes. Then the "nervous" turns into "pure fear" when Ray wonders if she really wants to marry him for love or if it's just for the elaborate wedding she's been planning since she was twelve.

While the Barones prepare for a friend's wedding, Ray kiddingly asks Debra, "Why did you marry me?" When she hesitates, he flashes back to the not-so-magical night 10 years before when he popped the big question. Ray gets unexpected, unsolicited and unwelcome help with from his parents, but Debra says yes anyway. That leaves the gloomy groom wondering if she did so because she loves him or because she felt pressured. So, Ray decides he's "gotta give her another chance to say no."

After Debra suggests that she might be more consistently romantic if she weren’t in charge of the birth control, Ray decides to make the drastic move of “cutting the wires.” But after a discussion with Robert, and other top “medical experts” he chickens out, but does muster enough bravery to go to the drugstore and buy “the stuff.” He even goes crazy and splurges on “the rainbow pack” but the plan for Halloween romance goes awry when Grandpa distributes the “chocolate coins in brightly colored wrappers” that he found to the remaining trick-or-treaters in the neighborhood.

It has always been Raymond’s life long dream to get an article published in Sports Illustrated. So when his friend Andy, the “stat guy” and novice sportswriter, sells a piece to the magazine, Ray is devastated. Instead of being happy for Andy, he’s only unhappy for himself. But things get even worse when Debra points out that he’s being self-centered. Then his father agrees and adds that he’s always been an “attention pig,” leaving Ray to deal with his newly discovered self-image.

When Debra and the kids go away for the weekend, Ray is forced to confront the real reason he doesn’t want to stay home alone. What should have been a couple of days of bachelor living and freedom from responsibility for Ray instead turns into a harrowing experience — that can be traced all the way back to his childhood. Rather than enjoying the rare peace and solitude at his own home, Ray actually chooses to head across the street and spend time with Marie.

Ray is bewildered, but not altogether displeased when Debra starts initiating sex on a more than regular basis. He can't believe his luck - and good fortune when as a result of Debra's new behavior it's as if he and she were newlyweds again. Ray is even willing to give up his golf game to satiate Debra's desires. But, never able to leave well enough alone, Ray looks for a reason behind her sudden burst of energy and gets a crushing blow to his ego.

Ray and Debra renew their wedding vows after they find out that Ray accidentally taped over their wedding with the 1991 Super Bowl.

Debra throws the Barone family into turmoil when she finally creates a dish that everyone likes. Ray can't believe it when he samples Debra's braciole. Even though her past attempts at cooking seemed to have ruined his taste buds, it's simply delicious. But, when Marie gets wind of Debra's cooking prowess, and sees the effect that the braciole has on Ray, Robert and Frank, it's war!

Ray's attempts to alleviate Debra's PMS moodiness only make her more irritable. When Ray witnesses Debra's hypersensitive mood and generally annoyed reaction to everything he says and does, he checks the calendar and realizes it's going to be a long couple of days ahead. In his desire to get a ""quick fix"" for Debra's womanly problems – thus making his life a heck of a lot easier – he turns a bad situation worse by suggesting that a simple pill will help with his wife's insufferable mood swings.

Ray gets sneezed on at the airport and he fears he might have caught something so Debra tries to take care of him but Marie takes over.

When Ray doesn't react to Debra's choking everyone makes fun of him so he tries to be more attentive in relative situations.

Marie and Debra set up Amy with Gianni to get Robert jealous so he'll want to get back together with Amy but their plan backfires when Amy and Gianni hit it off.

Raymond's friend Andy tells him that Jerry Musso, a radio talk show host, hates him. While Raymond is in shock over this, Robert enjoys seeing him fall over like this and they fight.

Ray hosts a lame bachelor party for Robert and is shamed by Debra, Marie and Amy into throwing him another one at the lodge, which is attended by Amy's father and brother.

Robert and Amy exchange vows in a classic Barone family wedding ceremony.

Robert and Amy exchange vows in a classic Barone family wedding ceremony.

Fed up with his wife's constant lateness, Ray leaves Debra at home rather than take her to the ESPY Awards. While Debra seethes over Ray's actions, Marie and Amy get into a heated debate with Frank and Robert when they air their own grievances about their wives' blatant disregard for the time.

Robert and Ray end up with the mother of all guilt trips when they decide not to help Marie with a home project so they can land a prime spot on the golf course. Their overnight wait in the car for a tee time becomes a brawl over their respective roles in their parents' future.

Debra complains to Raymond about leaving things around the house. Later on, when Raymond receives a personal letter from his idol, Muhammad Ali, he remembers what Debra told him, so he puts it away in a drawer. Unfortunately, when Debra later looks for a coupon in the same drawer, she's so put off by how much 'junk' is in there, she indiscriminately dumps most of its contents into the trash - and then dumps the trash into a garbage truck just as it arrives. When Debra realizes her mistake, she goes to Marie, desperate for help. Marie takes the blame, but Debra soon finds out that Marie, as always, has ulterior motives.