Vincenzo left his home in Italy for New York City three years ago in pursuit of fame, fortune and a successful sculpting career. And although he only returns home once a year, he has always kept in constant contact with his adoring wife Maria and their two children. However, Vincenzo seems to have vanished since his last Christmas visit, leaving his family completely alone and penniless. Maria, a local sandal maker has had enough of poverty and the ridicule of her small village. She decides to pack her bags and drag her children across the Atlantic to find Vincenzo and reunite her family. However, when Maria arrives in New York, she realizes that for years Vincenzo has been painting a picture that does not exist. When she and the kids finally track him down, Vincenzo is elated to see his children and his true love, yet his surprise for them is incomprehensible. Not only is he penniless, he is conveniently married to a Nutella addicted American woman named CHARLENE, and she is unmistakably pregnant.
Vincenzo pledges his love for Maria, but not even the obvious passion between the two makes a difference. Maria’s outrage is matched by Charlene’s fury. Yet through the outrageous and hilarious events of the next few days, the feuding women cannot help but bond over motherhood, a common husband, and sweet revenge.
In this comic entanglement of chased dreams, family complications, and foolish love, this now extended family must find a way to accept this ridiculous situation. Charlene asks Maria to collect the money that her convoluted boss, PAUL, owes her. At the studio where Paul runs a home-shopping program, Maria is coerced to fill in as the model. When the sandals that Maria wears (her homemade specialty) get more attention than the dress she is modeling, Paul hatches an idea to steal her invention.
As the circumstances escalate, everyone joins the battle to stop Paul from selling off Maria’s sandal design. When victory reigns, Vincenzo attempts to get back into the good graces of his family by taking a job at the Rent-A-Husband Agency, and renting his handyman services to Maria and Charlene. With a little humility, true love prevails and the women find joy in watching Vincenzo finally clean house.