At least Whitney Thore can stop worrying — and know she’s got a partner (for now) in raising her unborn child. On the Tuesday, January 31, episode of My Big Fat Fabulous Life, Whitney found out via three pregnancy tests that she’s expecting. She considered this an “immaculate-misconception” shocker, considering Whitney didn’t think she could get pregnant and was on birth control (though irregularly). When Whitney was tasked with breaking the news to her presumed baby daddy, ex-boyfriend Lennie Alehat, the wait to tell him was harrowing — but things didn’t end up as badly as she feared. (Watch a scene from the episode in the video above!)
Whitney had her share of mini-milestones discovering she was pregnant, from flaking on telling her parents the info to accidentally (almost) breaking the news on live radio. Here are our five favorite moments from Tuesday’s show.
1. Lennie will be there for the baby. Even though his and Whitney’s relationship status is uncertain, the baby’s father will be present. Whitney, tearing up after telling the news to Lennie, said she was extra-relieved he didn’t get upset and leave. “I never expected this to happen. I’ve never experienced it before,” Lennie said about hearing he would be a dad. “So it’s new to me, but it’s not, like, a bad thing, I feel. It could be a wonderful thing.”
A shocked Whitney hadn’t planned for Lennie’s response. She said in an interview later, “I spent so long going through all the possibilities in my mind of how upset Lennie would be that I didn’t even really consider the alternative, which is that he would be accepting of the news and even excited. It is an enormous relief.”
2. It didn’t sound as though Lennie was super-enthusiastic about staying with Whitney — he said in an interview that the thought of a baby bringing them closer didn’t occur to him. “I don’t know if a child would actually bring us back together. I had never thought about it,” Lennie said. “It might — I don’t know.”
Whitney said about their relationship status in an interview, “It’s really strange — in a matter of a couple months, to go from ‘I don’t think I’m in love with you anymore,’ and we’re breaking up, to ‘We’re having a baby.’ It’s a really weird feeling knowing I am tied to Lennie for the rest of my life.”
3. Whitney unofficially broke the baby news to the world (sort of) when she let slip on the air in a radio show that she was experiencing pregnancy-like symptoms, such as morning vomiting and fatigue. When the radio cohosts (at the station where Whitney was freelancing) called her on it, Whitney clumsily changed the subject until they waited for the commercial to grill her for details. “You’re pregnant! Oh, my God, you have all the symptoms,” said one DJ, who later told Whitney as she was leaving, “Don’t puke in our toilet.”
4. Upon mom Babs’ prying, Whitney told her that she was not a lesbian — despite physical affection with her friend Donna. A stone-face Babs said interesting lines like, “You could be RSTUVWXYZ, for zebra. I would not care if you and Donna are lesbians.” The awkwardness of the conversation made the skittish Whitney decide in the moment to put off telling her parents she’s pregnant, she said.
5. Buddy — Whitney’s housemate and close confidant — suspected Lennie may be untrustworthy. When Whitney first broke the pregnancy news to Buddy, he said, “You think he’s going to punk out? You think he’s going to be a punk bitch?” Whitney, fretting the possibilities, replied, “I don’t know what he’s going to do.”
Buddy said of Lennie, “I think he might deny responsibility, say that it’s someone else. I don’t know. That’s just my impression of him.”
Tell Us: What kind of parents will Whitney and Lennie be? Do you think they will stay together?
My Big Fat Fabulous Life airs on TLC Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
