Show’s Origins

I’m a bit confused. Were Robyn and Kody courting before TLC ever came into the picture - i.e. she would have joined the family regardless of whether they got the show or not? Or did Christine pitch the show and was told they were not interesting enough so Kody went looking for a 4th wife to get them the reality series?

And if they were courting before fame was even a thought, has it ever been explained as to how they expected to bear the additional expenses of 4 more people to clothe and feed when Robyn didn’t have a job and also came with a boatload of debt? The family was on food stamps and didn’t have two nickels to rub together.