TANSTAAFL

First off, if you caught the name of the post, good on ya.  There is always room for another Heinlein fan.  For those who have no idea what I'm talking about yet... well... that's kinda status quo, because most of the time I don't know what I'm talking about.  TANSTAFFL stands for "There Aint No Such Thing As A Free Lunch".  Sometimes, Heinlein is wrong.  Well, actually, as a Science Fiction writer, he was wrong a lot.

Just some of the food to help feed the kids...

I got this email from the Generations Pastor at our Church while I sat in Chinese School struggling with the finer details of wai mian （外面） vs li mian （里面）.

Morning!!
I trust all is well!!  I had a handful of people jump at the thought of blessing your family while Roberta is away.  Several others will get in touch with you directly.  The majority will be bringing the meals to the church tomorrow and leaving them in the LifeKIDS Kitchen Fridge.
The LifeKIDS team can help you bring anything to the van after church!
May you feel our continued love and support!!!
Kim

Okay, first off,  YAY!  FREE FOOD!  But... um, I might need "the LifeKIDS team" to "bring the food to the van"... How MUCH FOOD is there?!  But... YAY!  I don't think I have to cook for the rest of the week.

So THANK YOU all who have wonderfully donated food.

So much food!  Including Candy Cane Ice cream, chili, spaghetti,
M&M meats, Lasagna and so much more!  So yummy!

... hey... wait a second.  We've got a church full of over a thousand people, and not one of them decided to stand up when Pastor Kim was looking for Food Donations and say "You know what, I think The Yeti can do this.  I think he can take care of his kids, get them fed, and I don't think we really need to send him food".

No sir, apparently all 1000+ people felt that I needed help in feeding my children, bathing my children, dressing my children (one Mom reminded me to get their coats while we were leaving church (yes, I had forgot them on the coat rack)), and or remembering my children (one of the Ushers came running across the parking lot and flagged me down - only to poke his head in the car window and count the number of children in the car).  As we were walking out of the church, someone asked us why we had so much food, and my eldest son SeniorK said "Because every one thinks Dad is going to forget to feed us".

At what point should I feel ashamed in my parenting skills?  I mean, even my own kids thought I would forget to feed them.  But sadly, THAT was not the low-light of my morning.

No sir.  It was when the Mother of 7 (Mo7) children grabbed me in the hall way ...
Mo7:  Hey!  Good you are here!  I made you a big pot of Chili, it's in the fridge!
Me:  Awesome thanks!
Mo7:  No problem.
Me:  Hey wait, you've got like 27 kids!  And you made ME food?!
Mo7:  Yea, but I was making food anyway.
Me:  Well now I just feel bad.
Mo7:  Oh no!  Don't worry!
Me:  I mean, even if you take your 27 kids and divide them by two, you know, one for each adult, you STILL have more kids than I do right now!
Mo7:  Well you know, when I cook, I have to cook big.  I couldn't fit it all in my fridge anyway.
Me:  I feel so  much shame right now.
Mo7:  Oh no, it's OK.  I only have 6 children home right now.
Me:  Yes, thank you so much!
Mo7:  Even if it is the least we can do, at least we can help.

Yes sir.  Right about there... THAT was the low-light humbling moment of my day.  Here I was so proud that I got the kids dressed in the morning, did their hair, got them cleaned and fed... *siiiigh*  Pride is a horrible thing.  :-)

SO yes, thank you to all those who donated food to the cause!  :-)  It will be greatly appreciated!