Allison Kuch first appeared on my Five Year Plan a few years ago, in one of the videos, and you’re like, “Yeah, we can hang out in real life.” In the video, she walks up to her husband, NFL defensive end Isaac Rochell, and says, “Hey, baby, I think I’m ready.” When Rochelle asked, “For a child?” Kuh deadpanned, “No, it’s Margaret.”
It didn’t matter that I already had two kids when the video showed up on my feed. I can still relate. As I clicked follow and saw more of Kuh’s content, I realized that’s her magic: She feels like one of the girls. Someone you’ll get drunk watching love is blind. You can count on him to have a crazier “hear me out” cake than your own.
When I did meet Kuch (at least via Zoom), life had come full circle—she and Rochell welcomed their daughter, Scottie Bee, in December 2023. To say that the couple has a lot going on would be an understatement.
Rochell, who was recently waived by the Las Vegas Raiders, is considering his options. Since this was the first time they’d stayed in one place for more than seven months in the past four years, they decided to use the time to clean out and renovate their Southern California home. In addition, Kuh hosts the Sunday Sports Club podcast and they have both become social media creators with large followings.
So life may look a lot different than it did in the days when Kuh was preparing Margaret, but one thing hasn’t changed: She’s still taking us all along for the ride. Just when Scotty turned one, I caught up with Kuh to ask her about how the couple is doing now.
Scary Mom: As your first year of parenting comes to a close, how do you feel becoming a mother has changed you?
Ellie Kuh: In every way, shape and form… I feel like it’s the most life-changing thing, bringing a child into the world – especially a daughter. I saw bits and pieces of myself, but in a better way. I do feel like she made me a better person.
SM: Do you think becoming a parent has changed your relationship with Isaac?
AK: Having been with someone for ten years, I don’t think there are many surprises, but becoming parents is definitely a new journey for us. I guess I was surprised, not even by our relationship, but by other people sharing their experiences of how uninformed their husbands or their significant others were about their children. I am so grateful that I have a partner who is as supportive and as committed as I am.
SM: Random sidebar: I love the name Scotty! Where does it come from?
AK: Honestly, this is one of those Pinterest pictures—I think it’s “cute grandpa baby names.” I was thinking, Wait, girl Scottie is really cute. We like unique names, but not names that are too bizarre…names you’ve heard before. So when we discovered Scotty, we loved it. You’re bound to get different opinions, though; I feel like the older generation is going to be like, “Well, Scotty,” and the younger generation is going to be like, “Wait a minute, I like this.”
SM: What advice would you give that you would appreciate as you stand on the edge of this great journey?
AK: I think just take it day by day, one day at a time…I would give advice and listen to myself more than anyone else.
SM: You’ve been very open about talking about mental health as a new mom. Does this resonate with many of your followers?
AK: Yes, absolutely. I guess I was nervous about sharing just because I didn’t want people to think that because I was sad that it meant I didn’t like my daughter or that I wasn’t happy to be a mother. The two are completely unrelated. With birth, postpartum, and hormonal changes, you change a lot as a person and your life.
I’m glad I was able to share and I did get a lot of support from the audience. I honestly don’t know what I would do if I shared, “Oh, hey, I feel this way,” and people were like, “Oh, that’s weird.” You should figure this out. Because of vulnerability, you want it to help you, but you also want it to help other people. So, hopefully I’ve done that.
SM: You’ve also been very open about how difficult it is to make friends as an adult. Now that you’re settled, what have you found works for you?
AK: Once I started sharing that I didn’t have a lot of friends in my city, a lot of people reached out and said, ‘Wait, I don’t have friends; I don’t have friends. How do you meet friends? I finally found some core friends. We have girls’ nights, we have craft nights. We are both parents so being able to be away from our kids is a breath of fresh air but we can still speech When it comes to our kids, everyone understands.
I think the hardest part about being an adult, being a parent, making friends in a new place is you have to be a little bit vulnerable and put yourself out there a little bit. It’s kind of hard for me because I’m like, “Oh, what if they don’t like me?” But I feel like if you see someone and have a brief conversation, and you’re like, “We should find someone Time for a cup of coffee. “It’s that simple and it can turn into a huge friendship.
SM: One thing that was really difficult for me was negative self-talk, just because I lost a lot of confidence when my body was changing. Have you ever wondered how to have a conversation with Scottie about self-image and body image?
AK: I feel like I have to discipline myself sometimes now, and my husband helps me do that. If I say, ‘Oh, I hate this,’ my husband always says, ‘Hey, you really just had a baby. You need to give yourself some grace.
It’s crazy because my daughter has learned so much, even small hand movements, she understands sign language… I’m like, Wait, do you really understand what I’m saying? I want to protect her because I don’t want her to grow up in an environment of negativity and negative energy. I really wanted to create a positive family, especially with a girl like her – there are so many things that affect you growing up. I know I was bullied in middle school and I swear it bothered me for a long time.
So, I wanted to raise a daughter who was positive, but I also wanted to raise a daughter who was a little bit rude because I didn’t want anyone to talk down to her. I hope she sticks to her guns. I think I’ve got that part covered, it’s just the more positive part I need to work on.
SM: It’s funny you say that because I think what initially attracted me to you was that you were kind of wild in the best way. Do you think this is becoming more pronounced, or is it toning down a bit?
AK: I think initially it was toned down a bit because I was like, Oh, I’m a mom now. But now it’s kind of coming back because I’m like, wait, I want my daughter to understand that life isn’t too serious. No matter what happens, whether it’s a chaotic situation or a cooler, more relaxed situation, you need to keep life fun.
SM: I think it’s become more difficult now in the age of social media. How do you see yourself becoming a parenting content creator in the future?
AK: That’s where I get a little confused because there’s so much going on in the world, especially right now, and it’s like, what’s next for me? Do I want to continue sharing what I’ve already shared? At the end of the day, I want to be someone that young girls, peers, and older women can look up to positively. Who always stays transparent, always stays real.
I feel like there’s a fine line between being transparent and not sharing so much that you feel like you’re just giving yourself to everyone and everyone has a voice. It’s an interesting line to walk, especially sharing my life on social media but wanting to keep my daughter’s life private. But, so far, I’m proud of what I’ve done and what I’ve been able to share without sharing too much about her experiences or life.
SM: I’m sure that giving up so much of yourself can also be emotionally taxing. I go out for a girls night once a week and I love my girls, but after that, i need a nap.
AK: Unhooked my bra on the drive home. I said, ‘Well, this is exhausting.
I know I want to take my daughter offline because I want to protect her privacy, but it’s like, how do you share so much of your life, and you’re so transparent, and then the most important thing in your life Do things in life need to be kept secret? I feel like it’s been taking up a lot of my mental space lately because I love her…I want to talk more about this and that, but I don’t want to overstep it.
SM: We obviously have to talk about football because even without football it still affects all of your lives on such a small level. How do you feel about everything now?
AK: This past year has been a crazy year in football because we’re coming up on the year my husband was cut by the Raiders. I was obviously devastated when he was discharged from the hospital, but looking back, I’m so grateful that my husband was there for me throughout the entire postpartum experience, especially everything I went through during my C-section and recovery.
Now I feel very at peace with everything that was meant to be. As far as his football career goes, I know he’s very confident in everything he’s done so far. I’m looking forward to when he retires because it will be a little easier to be like, “I’m not afraid we have to move next week; we’ve already moved.” We’ve really grown up in this house.
SM: sunday sports club Podcasts are great. What’s the most gratifying thing about doing this?
AK: Thank you. I want to just share my love for sports with everyone. It’s not even just about sports, it’s about sports, so anything to do with fitness, hanging out with friends, and playing sports – but in a more pop culture way, as opposed to how everyone is trying to describe sports at the moment boring way.
Whenever people say, “Oh my gosh, I learned this and taught it to my boyfriend and he didn’t know it,” it’s the most gratifying thing ever. I thought, wow, I’m actually sharing something that people want to know, they’re interested in it, and it helps them in their relationships.
SM: I can’t imagine you guys have a lot of down time eating vegetables. But when you do that, do you and Isaac have a show you watch together or a common hobby?
AK: We are very passionate about reality TV. We eat it. My husband loves good reality TV shows like Bachelor, bachelorette, love is blind. Anything with drama, we consume it.
When we’re not lounging on the couch or bed, we also love trying new foods and restaurants. One thing we did while I was pregnant—and we haven’t started doing it again, but hopefully this will actually be a catalyst for doing so—is we would try a new restaurant every week.
SM: I know you may be doing some unscripted dramas in the future, but your comedic timing is exceptional. Any thoughts on getting into scripted television?
AK: I don’t think there’s a chance I’ll say no at this point – I’m open to anything and I’m excited about anything. A lot of people ask, “Oh, what’s next?” I’m like, “I’m waiting for it to come to me, so I’ll let you know.”
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
