Rug Cuddle (With Us)
Rug Cuddle (with Us) is a cozy, funny lifestyle podcast about living a creative life in the real world. Hosted by Mr. Kate (Kate Albrecht) and her husband Joey Zehr, it explores creativity, relationships, parenting, wellness, and modern life through honest conversation and bite-sized segments. Inspired by their real-life 'Rug Cuddles' from YouTube home makeover videos, each episode invites listeners to slow down and reconnect with what makes life whimsical and fun. Expect listener Q&As, relationship real talk, creative inspiration, and unfiltered conversations.
Episodes
Do We Regret Moving to Hawaii?
In Episode 18, we share the latest update on our dream home plans, including something Kate has wanted for years for and is the perfect birthday gift. Now we just need those permits to cooperate. A perfectly timed call from a 73-year-old creative weirdo reminds us of something we all need to hear: you’re okay. We also discuss why we left LA and whether the pros of living in Hawaii outweigh the con
They Said My Voice Would Ruin My Career
This week, a caller asks Kate a question that sparks a bigger conversation about staying true to yourself. Early in her acting career, TV executives told her she needed to tone herself down. Instead, she found a community of creative weirdos who liked her because of her quirks.We’re also celebrating Mars turning one, which marks a full year since one of the scariest chapters of our lives. For her
The DIY Nervous System Remodel That Changed My Life
This episode is a girl's hypersensitive guide to living in a world that's stacked against your nervous system. For Kate, that looked like years of debilitating chronic migraines. After trying just about everything, in true Mr.Kate fashion, she made her own solution and is so excited to share her midnight stretching ritual with all of you on the Rug Cuddle Instagram.
And because overwhelm doesn't
We lost a job… over breastfeeding?
Warning: this one's a tearjerker. We open up about something that weighed heavy on us: motherhood costing us a business opportunity. Knowing this happens to women all the time is exactly why we choose to walk away. Which got us talking about how women have spent years trying to fit into systems made for men, when science is only just now catching up to how differently we're actually wired. And ma
Parenting Witchcraft + Kate’s Princess Diaries Lore
Joey kicks things off poking fun at Kate’s witchy era, which thanks to WitchTok has only gotten stronger… but after an astrology reading hits a little too close to home, he’s suddenly shouting from the rooftops that after 7 years, he’s finally out of Uranus.
We also get into our experience trying elimination communication, aka “diaper witchcraft,” while potty training our newborn, Kate shares on
I Stopped Shaving 4 Years Ago... Here's What My Husband Thinks
In this episode, we push back on the status quo—from building a custom family bed to co-sleeping work, to Kate opening up about what she’s stopped doing to please society (like shaving) and fully embracing aging, to be an example for our daughter.
Tess might not have met her match from the podcast, but it did spark a fun night out with longtime friends—also single and ready to mingle—and led to
The Drama of The Dream House Continues...
In this episode, we’re racing to finish our guest house before visitors arrive but an unexpected (and very unwanted) guest—mold—might just change everything.
A caller sparks a conversation about the feng shui and Kate shares the rules she swears by to make a space feel as good as it looks—but things take a turn when Joey starts questioning her about the Somavedic under their bed…
Meanwhile, Kate
Coming Clean About Our Viral Outdoor Shower + Tess Gets a Date!?
You may have seen our viral outdoor shower transformation looking stunning on social media… and in this episode, we’re spilling the realiTEA of that project—including why Joey still showers in his boxers.
We talk about everything from diets (we’ve truly tried them all), to turning your kids’ handwriting into custom fonts (credit to Sydni Moran), to Harry Potter fan fiction, and even a criminal wh
How to Thrift Like A Designer + Reacting to Emma Chamberlain’s Furniture Line 🤔
In this episode, we’re diving into the art of thrifting—as designers who furnished nearly our entire first apartment secondhand and now source one-of-a-kind vintage gems for our makeover videos. As we enter a thrifting golden era, we’re breaking down how to spot what’s actually worth grabbing, plus the unexpected items most people overlook (but make incredible kids' toys or gifts). What are your f
The Truth About How Different We Really Are
In this episode, we get into the personality differences that cause most of our arguments—but also make us who we are. Kate opens up about what it’s like being a highly sensitive person, while Joey cannot wrap his head around why someone hasn’t invented a female urinal to fix long bathroom lines.We also give a shoutout to the Staples Baddie for fully embodying the creative weirdo spirit, and on ou
Getting Real about our Renovationship and Pinterest Death Spirals
This week we’re sharing what we’ve learned the hard way from our four-year renovationship with our dream home (that Joey admits he might have ruined)… including what we’ve learned about when DIYing makes sense vs when it’s worth calling in the pros.
Plus we’re diving into matrescence—the wild identity shift that comes with becoming a parent—along with brand bibles and our packing habits.
Tal
We’re YouTubers... But Raising Screen-Free Kids & Why Getting Better Feels Like Failing
This week, we’re talking about what it means to be YouTubers raising kids in a screen-free home, the tensions of working online while limiting screens offline, and how we try to stay on the creating-not-consuming side of technology. Plus, a very special guest (MY DAD) with firsthand experience raising a screen-free kid (ME!!) weighs in.
We also get into creative resilience - why getting better ca
Romanticizing life, having kids later, and planking noises?!
In this episode, we’re romanticizing not sticking to traditional timelines and having kids later in life. We talk with Tess about freezing her eggs and why there’s no single right schedule for starting a family… though Kate did have to draw the line at Joey’s idea of having a surrogate baby at 60.Then we get into small ways to romanticize your everyday life, including an internet challenge that mi
Kate's Interior Design Secret, Joey's Girl-Dad CRISIS & Why we're DONE People-Pleasing
This week, Joey had a full girl-dad existential spiral after realizing he can’t actually protect our daughter from the male gaze, which turned into a larger parenting conversation about raising our kids to create systemic change. We also answer a listener question about Kate’s uncanny ability to design spaces that feel perfectly personal: design intuition, empathy, or maybe some inherited psychic
The Early YouTube Days & Tess Was Engaged?
This week, we revisit the decisions that changed everything — from starting a YouTube channel when no one took it seriously to Tess walking away from her engagement (3 rings later!?) We unpack what sixteen years online has really meant: growing older on camera, deciding how much of our lives (and our kids’ lives) to share, facing imposter syndrome, and pushing back against algorithms and AI with c
Someone’s Stealing Our Foot Photos! 🦶😳 (Plus: The Co-Sleeping Debate & Extreme Journaling)
This week’s rug ramblings jump from raising emotionally healthy boys to defending co-sleeping to discovering the internet is rating Joey’s feet. Kate flips through the “journal ecosystem” that keeps her productive, fuels her creativity, supports her mental health, and yes, includes cute charms. We also have a breakthrough moment when Joey finally understands why BookTok loves spicy romantasy novel
Our Real-Life Enemies to Lovers Story
This week we cuddle up and get chatty about how to stop your kid from swearing when, honestly, it’s kind of hilarious. Kate gets real about her creative crash outs, and we take your call-ins on Waldorf school and Taking Five — the movie we met filming that now feels like a total fever dream.Tess joins us to unpack her current dating strategy and the spicy books she and Kate are devouring… while Jo
Marriage, Romantasy, and the DIY We Wish We’d Never Done
Kate and Joey like you’ve never heard them before! 18 years together, running Mr. Kate and two kids later, we still have so much to talk about including keeping the spark alive with what…choremance?!, comparing our wildly different algorithms and what’s in them and sharing what we’ve been dm’ing each other lately. Kate names her Creative Spark of the week, taking inspiration from the analogue bag
Welcome to The Rug!
Rug Cuddle (with Us) is a cozy, funny lifestyle podcast about living a creative life in the real world.
Hosted by Mr. Kate (aka Kate Albrecht), known for helping millions tap into their inner creative weirdo, and her husband Joey Zehr, who brings the practical to the whimsical—keeping the glitter out of the engine—Rug Cuddle (with Us) explores creativity, relationships, parenting, wellness, and m
