Clifford's Puppy Days

When Clifford and Jorge find that their new rather large puppy playmate Bruno plays too rough for them, they ditch him rather than tell him the truth. But upon realizing how much they’ve hurt his feelings, they discover that telling the truth is far less hurtful and is, in fact, the best way to be friends. The kids agree to create a local newspaper for the neighborhood. At first they aren’t sure they can do it. But with the support of each other – and by believing in themselves - they manage to create an exciting newspaper filled with stories from around the neighborhood.

At the Dog Run, Clifford can’t wait to play with Jorge and the other dogs. But as they play, Clifford is constantly reminded of how small he is. When a ball lands on top of a bush, he needs Daffodil’s help to get it down. When he can’t make it over an obstacle course fence, Norville flies down to give him a boost. When Mrs. Z hands out biscuits, Clifford is crowded out, and only gets a biscuit because Jorge saves him one. Clifford is just fed up with being small. But his friends remind him that they, too, have their own idiosyncrasies to deal with – Jorge has an extra-long body, Norville has all those feathers, and Daffodil has her floppy ears. But, Clifford says, all those things are what make them what they are. And they point out that there are great things about being small, too, and that’s what makes Clifford the special puppy that he is. Emily Elizabeth has read Clifford the story of Aladdin and the Magic Lamp and he can’t wait to share it with his friends. Of course, Norville knows all about it – he even knows where to find the lamp! While he’s off fetching it, Jorge, Daffodil, and Clifford imagine how they’re going to spend their wishes. In the end, they all realize they already have everything they need.

When Jorge digs up a shark tooth necklace in the courtyard, it is taken from him and given to its rightful owner. He cannot understand why “Finders Keepers Losers Weepers” (the children’s proverb of dubious ethical merit) doesn’t apply. He takes the necklace back and buries it again. Clifford sees this and must decide if he should dig it up and return it, or protect his friend - even though he believes that Jorge is wrong. Clifford resolves the problem by convincing Jorge to do the right thing. Nina and Jorge become instant celebrities when they get their picture in the newspaper. All this attention makes them act differently and alienate their friends. When their “15 minutes” ends and isolation sets in, Nina and Jorge realize that it’s time to mend fences and come back to earth. Luckily, their friends are there to welcome them back.

Emily Elizabeth and Nina join in a sandcastle competition at the beach. Goaded by another contestant’s dog, Clifford and Jorge become super competitive to help their girls win. It’s Emily Elizabeth who has to explain that they didn’t enter the contest to win, but to have fun. As the kids go off for their first day of school, the gang decides it would be fun to have their own school, too. There’s just one problem. While they seem to have five qualified teachers, they only have one willing pupil—Clifford. When an overworked Clifford is too tired to play with Emily Elizabeth after school, the gang realizes how unfair they’ve been, and set up school in a more equitable way.

The kids gather to turn a vacant lot into a city garden. But without a plan, things turn into a chaotic mess. It’s only when they finally work together that they create a beautiful garden. When Jenny replants a broken willow branch so that it can grow to be a new tree, Norville tells the gang the same trick works with broken toys. The animals’ effort to replant their toys results in nothing but a big muddy mess, until the kids come to their aid, and on their own, decide to create new toys from the old.

Evan goes a little too far when he’s playing spooky tricks on the kids, until Clifford accidentally gives him a good scare.There’s a costume camp out party in the courtyard on Halloween night. Everyone drifts off to sleep but Clifford, who’s too spooked by unfamiliar sounds to close his eyes. Norville comes to his rescue, and together, they nervously uncover that the “things that go bump” are only frightening in their imaginations.

When Clifford’s plan to give Daffodil a surprise birthday party collapses, he is afraid she’ll be disappointed. But Daffodil is touched and thrilled that he made the effort and that all her friends have gathered to celebrate her special day. When Norville injures his wing he’s taken in by Emily Elizabeth. At first, Clifford is happy to have him, but gradually the puppy becomes tired of sharing his things and Emily Elizabeth’s attention and begins to act out.

Clifford becomes the little dog who cried wolf when he claims to have seen a huge flying dinosaur and an enormous floating teddy bear. The problem is ... he’s telling the truth. When no one believes him, Clifford retreats into himself, and wants to run away. But when he sees a man holding onto the ear of an immense floating turkey and calling for HELP, Clifford knows he has to put his pride aside and get someone to believe him. Mr. Solomon, who is hosting Thanksgiving, plans to make his mom’s favorite potato pancakes for the occasion. When the pancakes are a disaster, everyone surprises him by bringing their own special brand of pancakes to the holiday dinner.

After promising to play with little Lewis Sidarsky, Clifford gets into a game of ball with his older friends that Lewis is too small to play. When he realizes Lewis has disappeared, Clifford must find his friend, apologize and make amends. While babysitting for Emily Elizabeth, Evan mistakenly believes he has made Clifford really disappear with his new magic trick kit. Instead of telling Emily Elizabeth about it right away, he tries to keep her distracted while he frantically tries to find the little pup.

The kittens accidentally break the Menorah. Their “sticky” attempts to fix it result in a special, if unusual, Menorah that becomes part of their annual celebration. Zo can’t resist sneaking in and opening all eight of his presents on the first night of Hanukah. He soon realizes that he’s spoiled his own fun by taking the surprise out of each night. Flo comes to the rescue by allowing him to share in her new gifts.

Although it lacks high tech robotics and glitz, Emily Elizabeth’s presentation of how she cares for Clifford is the hit of Show and Tell. When Daffodil agrees to tell the little Sidarsky kids a story, she’s all set with a tale that’s utterly satisfying…for a rabbit. It’s not until she finally begins to incorporate some of the others’ ideas that the story becomes a hit with her audience.

Clifford tries to be a “hero” to impress his beloved Emily Elizabeth. He soon learns that being called “my best friend in the whole world” can be just as rewarding as being called a “hero.” When Mrs. Z presents the kids with candy canes, they decide to make cookies to thank her. But as their cookie list grows and their standards rise, they become fed up with frosting and each other. With Clifford’s help, they remember that Christmas is about celebrating being together.

Daffodil’s stuffed bunny, Bubbles, is missing and Daffodil blames Clifford. After totaling Emily Elizabeth’s bedroom, Bubbles turns up in the toy basket, and Daffodil must admit that she’s been as careless as Clifford. Emily Elizabeth and her friends think they have to take it easy when they play the kids on Mr. Solomon’s wheelchair basketball team. But by the end of the game, they realize they’ve misjudged their abilities.

Clifford and Daffodil get very competitive over who can make Emily Elizabeth the best Valentine’s Day gift of all. In the end, they realize she would have loved whatever they gave her, because she loves them. Emily Elizabeth’s excitement over the Father/Daughter-Mother/Son dance at the Community Center turns to anxiety when she realizes she and her dad have to dance in front of a crowd.