Marge pressures Homer into buying life insurance after he suffers a garage door to the throat accident while performing a little Sunday cleaning. When she learns that Homer is not insurable, Marge takes matters into her own hands by implementing across the board cost cutting in the household. Moe, Lenny and Carl convince Homer that all financial decisions should be made jointly which drives Homer to purchase a RV as an act of defiance. Homer's frivolous purchase infuriates Marge causing the parents to divide and fight for their children's love as Marge remains in the house and Homer lives in the RV parked in the backyard. While driving through Springfield with the kids, Homer befriends a convoy of fellow RV enthusiasts and invites them to dock in his backyard. Marge retaliates by shutting off the utility hook-ups resulting in a huge argument between the couple. In an effort to save their parent's marriage, Bart and Lisa steal the RV and head to the dealer for a refund. Homer and Marge decide to work through their differences to track down the children just as the kids lose control of the RV and crash onto a departing Turkish freighter. Marge's penny pinching comes in handy when she is able to use surplus cases of soup stored in the trunk to persuade the freighter to turn around and reunite the family.
