THE BIG ONE!!!

Happy Birthday Drew-Drew!!!

CONGRATS TO SHANE!!!

Shane was recognized by his teachers this month for being a "Kid of Character" and showing extra special "Fairness" towards his classmates. He received an award from the principal at an assembly in front of all the second graders...and it totally was not my imagination that Shane received the loudest little cheers from SEVERAL little female voices when his name was announced.

HERE COMES TROUBLE!

Check out this video to see what Drew learned this weekend!

JUST HANGING OUT!

I know some of you have already seen this photo, but I just really like it A LOT and wanted to share it with everyone else!

JUST ME AND MY DAD!

It's always nice to give the boys a little one-on-one time so since they were off of school this past Friday, it was Shane's turn to spend the day just hanging out with Rory. They decided to go hike Goldmine Mountain which is about a 15 minute drive from our house. It sounds like they had a blast even though they went off the path onto a "dangerous and illegal path". I guess they didn't see the sign telling them these important details until the end of their hike. But Shane was a trooper and made it the entire 2.5 miles all the way to the top even through some really steep areas....very impressive for a peanut sized 7 year old who even was carrying a whole load of rocks he collected to bring home to show Casey and Kyle. Of course, he slept the whole 15 minute ride back home!!! This photo is from the beginning of the hike so you can see how far you have to walk just to get to the mountain itself. What a great way for just the two of them to spend the day!

RYAN AND THE BEANSTALKS!

Ryan was playing in our backyard the other day by these small palm trees and I had asked him if he was in his fort....he first said "No, I'm in the forest".....and then after thinking about it a little while he changed his mind and said "No, mommy, these are my beanstalks!"

"DOUBLE TROUBLE"

Call us crazy, but we have two new Shih Tzu's....

Cooper and Cody!!

INVESTIGATE YOUR STOMACH....

The following was an assignment Shane did in class today. Please read carefully....it's hilarious!

Break up a cracker and put it in a Ziploc bag. Add a small amount of water and squeeze the mixture. This is similar to what happens in your mouth. Now add some vinegar (pretend digestive juice). Seal bag tightly then mash it with your hands.

Question #1 - Describe what happened.

SHANE'S ANSWER: The cracker turned into liquid.

Question #2 - What does the cracker mixture look like now?

SHANE'S ANSWER: It looks like barf!

PRESCHOOL HAS BEGUN....

Well, he finally did it!!! His first day of preschool and believe it or not....he loved it!!! Who would of thought? (Not me!!!) No complaining, no tears, no being afraid....he just walked right in the room and made himself comfortable at the Art and Craft area and never looked back. He is going for an hour and a half twice a week....which is not only great for him, but now I get to workout at the health club right in the building where his preschool is. HUGE PLUS!!! Ryan loves going to school so much that on the second day when I went to pick him up, he didn't want to leave. Plus now he thinks he is soooo cool that he gets to talk about what happened at his school during dinnertime and not just have to sit and listen to the older boys. Good job Ryry....you're a big boy now!

"YEAH WE HAD VISITORS!!!"

Diane, Ashley and Kelly came to visit us for four days this past week! We were soooo happy to see them (especially Ashley who recently got back safely from Iraq). We're glad they got to see a little of our new home state and we really hope they come visit again soon. Maybe next time they'll get to experience some normal Arizona weather instead of the unusual gloomy days we had while they were here. Of course, it's back to beautiful since they left! UGH! Anyways, I personally want to thank them all for a great weekend for myself....some girl time was just what I needed. I don't get much of that in our house being outnumbered 6:1. I had a blast shopping, eating, shopping, hiking, shopping, laughing and just hanging out. I really enjoyed winning in bowling too....thank you very much! Also, thanks for getting us all addicted to the Deal or No Deal competition! Please come again soon!!!

"ZOOLIGHTS"

Friday night we went to the Phoenix Zoo to see "Zoolights". It was really cool to see the whole zoo all decorated in lights for the holiday season. Especially on a 65 degree evening in January! The boys got to ride a camel....which I'm still shocked Ryan actually did it. Plus they saw a talking giraffe that somehow knew their names and said "Hello". It was really a great night....and I'll never forget the drive home and the wonderful things Aunt Di-Di taught Ryan....all I can say is it involved his nose and Kelly. ICK!!! Thanks Di!

FIRST ONE TO THE TOP WINS!!!

Saturday we went hiking at the Superstition Mountains....which is only about a 30 minute drive from our home. We hiked 2.4 miles....which took about 2 hours....but that also included a zillion stops to take pictures. And let me tell you, Casey and Kyle enjoyed each and every one of those pictures....JUST KIDDING!!! It was such a great experience and an awesome workout! I can't say the experience of our drive home was any fun though. We decided to drive through some mountains on this VERY narrow REALLY winding road. My hands were soooo sweaty from holding the steering wheel soooo tight (in the 10/2 position of course) and a few times I couldn't tell if my foot was on the brake or the gas. I'm sure everyone felt soooo safe knowing that! It definitely was a great day and I'm soooo glad Diane, Ashley and Kelly were there to experience it with us!

WHO ARE THESE KIDS???

IN MEMORY....

Wrigley was taken from us unexpectedly this past week. He was only with us for a short time, but we will NEVER EVER forget him. He brought soooo much joy and happiness to our lives. The sounds of laughter that he filled our house with will ALWAYS be remembered. And that cute little half black/half white face that gave us all tons of kisses....we will miss him soooo much. We can't even describe the emptiness we feel without you. We love you Wrigley and you'll always be in our thoughts!!!

Just another beautiful day outside....

....with Camelback Mountain in Scottsdale behind us!

Someone seriously needed a nap....

....and it totally didn't matter that he decided to take it in Wrigley's dog bed! This is Ryan's nap time in the middle of the day and of course he is in his usual daily attire.... his jammas.

Our Scary Little Monster!

It took me just about forever to get this photo....it's really funny if you look closely to see Drew's teeth....two bottom middle and two fangs. And from all the drool on his shirt I can only guess that there are more on the way!

We Wish You a Merry Christmas!!!

INTRODUCING....

....STROH BOY #6....a.k.a. Wrigley! Santa totally surprised the boys today by dropping off their new dog a few days early. And what a surprise it was!!! Here is this really big box with a huge bow on top with a very large gift bag sitting next to it on our doorstep and what do each of the boys do? They all totally just walk around it like it wasn't even there! Typical boys! But once they actually removed the lid of the box they all were soooo happy to see this cute little face staring up at them. Everyone has bonded really good so far....even Rory has a new best buddy! Ryan already loves to just run around in circles while Wrigley chases after him. Seeing all the boys laughing and playing with the puppy is just the cutest thing ever and it makes all the doggy training totally worth it! (Someone please remind me I said that on a regular basis over the next few weeks!) FYI - Wrigley is a Shih Tzu, born October 30th and was the runt of a litter of four males and one female. He currently weighs in at a whopping 2lbs. 7oz.

WINTER WONDERLAND

This past weekend our neighborhood celebrated the holiday season by having a Winter Wonderland Festival. This included 24 tons of snow! There was a small hill for sledding and a separate area of snow for the younger kids to play. Ryan had the best time just playing with his buckets and shovels....and eating the snow too of course! But we trained him well....after about an hour in the cold stuff, he preferred to take his buckets and shovels to the park to play in the sand! What a smart little boy!

Check Out Casey!

Casey went to another middle school dance this past weekend to celebrate the holiday season. Check out how handsome he is in what he calls his "fancy" clothes! HA! Too funny! He even danced with not one, not two, not three, but FOUR girls. OMG!!!!!! And they were slow dances!!!!! I just have to say it again.....OMG!!!!!! I totally am soooo not ready for him to get any bigger!

"JAMMA BOYS"

Oh no, we have another "jamma boy" in our house! Ryan already thinks that Shane is the coolest big brother ever, but when he found out that they have matching pajamas.... OMG!....Shane just got soooo much cooler! You should of seen them running around laughing and dancing! They had such a blast....all because of the simple fact that they having matching pj's. Oh, to be a kid again!

HO! HO! HO!

Shane's Letter to Santa!

The following is a letter Shane wrote during class today....

Dear Santa,
Please put me on the nice list because I clean my room. At school I got a good report card. And I behaved at school. At school and at home I use my manners. I listen to mom. I really want to be on the nice list so you can bring me Rachet and Clank, Future Tools of Destruction, a dirt bike and boxing gloves, Air Hogs and Bone books. How many elves do you have? My brothers can sometimes be on the nice list too. Thank you!

Look who came to visit....

....it's Uncle Randy! And I just want to say that I hope the boys have as much fun with their Christmas presents as they did with him! He stayed with us for two nights last week and the boys were all VERY sad to see him leave. They all had soooo much fun hanging out with him....they introduced him to their friends and showed him around where we live....they also went bike riding, played football and even went scorpion hunting. The first day he was here, they were all getting ready for a bike ride and it was about 4:30pm, 75degrees outside and Rory runs inside the house real quick before they leave....he comes back outside and you should of seen Randy's face when he sees Rory putting on a sweatshirt....it was soooo funny, but 75degrees is chilly to us now! Isn't this photo of him and the boys awesome with the beautiful sky in the background? Do you think anyone would notice him in it if we use it as our Christmas card picture? LOL! It's soooo cute! He will be back in Arizona again in January and we hope he is looking forward to his visit as much as we all are!

TOTALLY HILARIOUS!!!

Today, Ryan and Drew were in the family room together and I was sitting in the kitchen shopping online (hmmm, imagine that). Anyways, they're both just playing on the floor and I can hear Ryan making Drew laugh and after a little while I see Ryan stand up with his hands on his hips and he starts yelling REALLY loud "DREW-DREW DEAN STROH! WHAT DID YOU DO?" I guess Drew had gotten into Ryan's poptart that was on the table, but the hilarious part of this story is Drew's middle name is James, not Dean.....Dean is Ryan's middle name! Don't know why he'd do that?? Maybe cuz he is the biggest stinker EVER and he's heard his full name yelled out a number of times! Too funny how the mind of a three year old works!

CONGRATS TO CASEY!

Just wanted to let everyone know that Casey was named "Student of the Month" after being nominated by his teachers. Only 10 kids out of the 1300+ kids in his school get this privilege each month. WOW! He was honored with a special breakfast today and he also received a really nice backpack with the school logo on it. Casey, you're awesome and we all could not be any more proud of you!!! Keep up the great work!

OH SOOOO MESSY!

I'm not sure how much of his meal actually made it in his mouth!

(Click on the picture to enlarge it to see just how messy he is.)

Arizona Cardinals vs. San Francisco 49er's

Rory and Kyle went to the Arizona Cardinals game with John and Riley Keenan this past Sunday. John got four free tickets from a friend and they could not of been better tickets. $325 each seat on the 50 yard line in the Club Section which included ALL food and drinks. (Prime rib, anyone?) Have I mentioned how great that Keenan family is? They sure made Kyle's first pro game experience one he will never forget! Maybe I should send them a cheesecake to say "thank you"!!! :)

THANKSGIVING 2007

We asked all the boys what they were thankful for this year and this is what they said....Casey - having the best mom and dad in the world and also for all of his little brothers!....Kyle - his entire family and all of his friends!....Shane - his mom and dad!....Ryan - his trains!....Drew - he just kind of looked at us funny but we all knew what he was thinking! We had a great day that we spent with The Keenan Family (our neighbors from Algonquin). I cannot even begin to tell you how thankful we are to have them as friends. They have honestly made our move out to Arizona one we'll never regret! It is kind of scary to know that there is another couple in this world that is soooo much like Rory and I! Except I would NEVER EVER leave almost a whole Cheesecake Factory cheesecake at their house for them to eat all by themselves! That would just be soooo wrong! :) Hope everyone had a great Turkey Day....gobble, gobble! Oh yeah, check out Rory in the photo and how proud he is of his first "deep fried" turkey! It was soooo delicious - I highly recommend everyone cooking theirs like that next year....or come to our house and enjoy ours!

Check Out Studly....I Mean Shaney!

Shane took part in the Second Grade Thanksgiving Concert....of course, he was as cute as can be and did great while doing his solo speaking part about how Dad's carve turkeys! Check out Shane's girlfriend, Jordan....two girls to the left of him (she's exactly as tall as he is)! He's totally not shy about her....trust me, she is usually one of the topics we discuss at dinnertime and he constantly reminds us all about how cute she thinks he is. And he's only in second grade....YIKES!

Need I Say More?

The Green Machines!

The boys just got these Green Machines and wanted me to post videos of them showing off!

Check out Kyle "The Poser" and Casey "Mr. Wipe Out"!

(double click the "play" arrow)

THIS BUDS FOR YOU!!!

Our neighbor invited us to his sister's ranch this past Saturday to meet the famous Budweiser Clydesdales! They were staying at her ranch for the week since they were taking part in Gilbert Days (the town parade, fest and rodeo). We also went to see them early Sunday morning to watch them do their daily workout and to see how they prepare for their appearance at the rodeo later in the day. It was pretty cool! They are soooo beautiful and HUGE! All of the other "regular" horses at the ranch seemed soooo small. We learned a lot about them....there are six different groups of Clydesdales that travel the US. The group we saw are the ones that appear in all the TV commercials....plus we got to meet the Budweiser Dalmatian "Brady", who is also in the commercials. Can you believe that they wear harnesses/saddles during their shows that cost $90,000 EACH? And Brady travels with his own driver in a stretch-type van that they call his limo. Seeing them "behind the scenes" at the rodeo was interesting....we got to see all the hard work that goes into keeping them groomed for the show....and then the show itself was awesome. They dance around doing their little sidesteps and all of them are ALWAYS in sync and they all constantly look directly towards the crowd. It definitely was a very cool experience and a weekend enjoyed by all of us! On a side note....does this surprise you?....my neighbor tells Rory to bring along a cooler of beer to the ranch on Saturday night so what does he do?....he fills the cooler with HEINEKEN! He said he was just going to use the excuse that he thought Budweiser owned Heineken....what a dork!

Gimme a S - H - A - N - E....Go Shane!!

Today was the final game for Shane's first soccer season. The team went into this game undefeated....except for those stinkin' dads who beat them at their team party....anyways it was a VERY exciting and intense game (I think more intense for the parents)....final score was 5-0 and Shane's team won again!! The best part....Shane scored his second goal of the season!! YEAH!! It was sooooo cool to see him immediately find his mom on the sideline (who had totally jumped out of her chair and was cheering SOOOOO loud) and he gave her a big thumbs up! He also played goalie today and saw A LOT of action but thankfully didn't let any balls get by him. OMG, I get sooooo nervous when they put him in as goalie....he just seems sooooo small in that big old net! And for the worst part....I forgot my camera!!! UGH! I hate when that happens....of course I could of gotten some great action shots, but trust me he totally played great! Way to go Shaney....you're awesome!!

Mom's Favorite Photo

"TOUCHDOWN!"

"Future Heisman Trophy Winner"

"Determination"

"Making it look easy!"

"SOCCER SHOWDOWN"

To cap off their undefeated season, Shane's soccer team decided to take on all the dads tonight in a VERY intense game. The competition was tough for both teams and in the end the dads came out ahead....6-5. There definitely was no going easy on the little guys! It was really nice to see Rory enjoying himself so much playing a game he knows absolutely NOTHING about!

End of Football Season....

Kyle played pretty good today in his final game of the season. He did some awesome blocking and had a great 40+ yard run but was knocked out of bounds at less than the one yard line. Oh, so close! Unfortunately they lost 18-12, so that put them at 5-4 for the season. He'll be back playing in the Spring....with his dad as Head Coach!

For all you baseball fans out there....Kyle's head coach had a friend come watch today's game....former All-Star Baseball Player Junior Spivey (who is now with the Boston Red Sox organization)....pretty cool for Casey, Kyle and Shane to meet him at the team party! Too bad though that it wasn't the coaches brother-in-law, Derek Lee from the Cubs. The boys are hoping to meet him and lots of the Cubs once Spring Training rolls into town and we'll get to go along with the coach and his family. Cubs play about 20 minutes away from us so book those Spring Break vacations now!

Family Fishing Day!

We just spent Saturday morning at our neighborhood's Family Fishing Day! It was held at a new smaller lake in our community and it seemed that all the fish were either not hungry or just still sleeping. Unfortunately, the boys did not catch anything, but they all really enjoyed being outside on ANOTHER beautiful day (today's weather is absolutely perfect). Not sure who has the worst patience for fishing though....Ryan or Rory!

(ANOTHER) THINGS KIDS SAY....

The other day Ryan and I were in the middle of playing Candyland and he gets up to get his juice off the kitchen counter so I ask him to bring me my Mountain Dew from the counter too. So he brings it to me and says "here Mommy, here's you're icky juice." I say "thank you" and don't drink any just yet so he pushes it towards me and says "here Mommy, drink your icky juice". So I take a drink of my Mountain Dew and then he just looks at me with the most curious eyes ever and says "was your icky juice disgusting?" I guess you really needed to be there to hear him ask that question because he said it more like he was asking if it was the most delicious drink I've ever tasted.

Way to Go Casey!!!

Casey competed in the first round of the "Battle of the Books" for his sixth grade class today. There were seven teams competing and each team had three team members, except Casey's only had two since some girl dropped out at the last minute. All teams had to read the same four books and answered questions today about those books for points. The top three teams advance to the next round and will compete against another school in our district. Drum roll please....Casey's team came in 1st place!!! And his mom was there to witness it all with tears in her eyes and just being the proudest mom ever....also because it brought back memories of when she was in sixth grade WAY back when and her team won 1st place for her school district. Now she knows he doesn't just get his good looks from her....he can thank her for a (very) small part of that brain too!

How's the weather?

Just another day in the life of Ryry!

I got my jamma's on....my cowboy hat....my booger buster (whatever that thing is called?)....and my fruit roll-up around my neck! Now I just need my snowboots and I can outside and play!

READ MY SHIRT....

....and I'll give you just one guess as to who it pertains to?
(Click on photo to enlarge it!)

WHERE'S RORY?

This picture totally cracks me up and I just wanted to share it with all of you!

3 REASONS TO LOVE THE UPCOMING SEASON....

1. SLEDDING HAS NO AGE LIMIT! (It should for people like me who break their ribs trying to race your niece down the hill.)

2. COOKIES ARE SUDDENLY A FOOD GROUP!

3. YOU'RE ACTUALLY EXPECTED TO GO SHOPPING!

I read this in a magazine today and just thought it was pretty scary that someone else out in the world thinks EXACTLY like me!

THINGS KIDS SAY....

Today as Ryan was having yet ANOTHER pooping episode....

Rory: "Ryry, you are a pooping machine!"

Ryan: "I not a pooping machine, I Ryry!"

Three Days After Halloween....

....and Ryan is now wearing Drew's costume! As you can see from the photo, he has fallen asleep from a long hard day of just being a 3 year old! Look closely at our leather sofa to get a partial view of his "artwork" that we tried to have professionally cleaned but it won't come out! You should see what's under the blanket! STINKIN' KID!

Check Out Kyle!

This totally isn't the best video but you can at least kind of see Kyle running the ball today. Sorry about the shakiness at the end, but I was excited....turn up the volume and you'll hear me yelling!!! I guess I have to mention that they lost....18-13. Next week is his last game so I'll try to get some better videos then and hopefully they'll win!

"Soooo, How's Arizona???"

Since everyone has been asking....so, how's Arizona? I thought I'd let you all know how we've adjusted during the past 3 months. Basically all I can say is it went soooo much smoother than we could of hoped for! Some of you know that Rory had asked the boys to give it a try for 6 months and if they didn't like it here that we'd move back to Illinois. Trust me, that wasn't really going to happen, but thankfully they all agreed! So, after only 6 weeks we were all having dinner one night and we took a vote...."who wants to stay here and who wants to go back?" It was unanimous....STAY HERE! After only 6 weeks!!! I think if we would of asked sooner it would of gotten the same response. It definitely helped that they started school right away and plus the boys really enjoyed it the last time we lived here. But this time we're here for good! We live on a very quiet street in a really nice neighborhood of all ranch homes. We are 3 houses from the end of the culdesac where there is a bike path that leads right to the school. You can see the school from our house and also soccer and baseball fields, a beautiful lake where we can fish, the neighborhood clubhouse and a huge park. It's all very green and reminds us of Illinois. The boys all have met a bunch of friends through school and their sports teams, had no problems adjusting to the new school and they all love the Arizona weather! Will we miss the seasons? Maybe, but we can always drive up to northern Arizona to see snow or Fall colors. Do we mind the 100+ temps? Not as much as we minded the cold Chicago temps! I've tried to explain to some of you already....110-120 is very hot, low 100's are hot, 90's are comfortable, 80's are perfect and 70's are a tiny bit chilly. It does make a HUGE difference when you don't have the humidity. I'll take the dry heat over that humidity any day....definitely makes for much better hair days! Summers here are like winters there....you just basically spend most of your time indoors....except at night we'd swim every night after dinner....with NO MOSQUITOES! When we first got here in the middle of summer we thought we'd never meet any neighbors, but then once the weather cools down, everyone is outside every night just hanging out. We couldn't of gotten any luckier with our neighbors....they're all really nice and most don't have family here either. And whose the most neighborly??? Okay, sit down for this.....it's Rory!!!! OMG! One night I asked him to go get Kyle from a neighbors house and he came back home 2 hours later. So, all in all, we miss EVERYONE back in Illinois, but we couldn't of made a better decision for our family by moving here. Sure we (or I should just say "I") have days where it's hard to adjust, but we really feel at home here. So, come for a visit and see for yourselves! Oh yeah, I wanted to mention that you can also see the girls softball fields from our house (P and Haley are you listening?) And lastly, it is soooo much nicer to be able to drive into California, Nevada or even Mexico for the weekend instead of going to Wisconsin!!! Just thought a few of you (I won't mention names) should know that!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

First, I have to say that Halloween hasn't always been my favorite holiday! I usually can't wait for all of it to be over - all the last minute decision making of what to be, changing minds on costumes (especially after their bought) and just all the candy that gets eaten mostly by ME! But in Arizona we could not of enjoyed it anymore than we did! It's very different here than what we are used to. First, it's beautiful outside! HUGE PLUS! Second, the kids don't go trick or treating until it is totally dark outside. There were soooo many people that go all out on decorating their homes and even some spooky ones that the boys wouldn't even go up to. Some people put mummies, ghosts and monsters in their yards a week or so before Halloween, but on the big night those all come to life! YIKES! Every neighborhood street seems to have block parties and everyone hangs out in their driveways or in culdesacs. We spent the night with a group of neighbors in the driveway of a home at the end of our culdesac and they had a movie playing up on their garage door. Soooo cool to use your garage door as a big screen! The kids loved it and we hope to take advantage of that again soon! Rory and Ryan hitched a ride on the neighbors golf cart (totally helped keeping Ryan from getting too tired - another HUGE PLUS) and they just followed the boys from house to house. Everyone got lots and lots of candy! The best part of the night for me was when Ryan came back and gave me a bag of Skittles and said "here mommy, I got these just for you, they're yummy in my tummy!" So I open the bag and before I can get one piece out he grabs the bag and starts eating them! Hope you enjoy their costumes....Casey is a Haunted Spirit (this mask had the coolest eyes that glowed in all different colors), Kyle is a football player (of course), Shane is Jack Skellington (from the Nightmare Before Christmas movie) and of course Ryry is Mickey Mouse and Drew is the cutest little Donald Duck ever....but when he took his Donald head off he looked like Humpty Dumpty!

STROH SURVEY

I asked everyone tonight to quickly name the one thing they miss most about Illinois....please don't be offended if you're not on our list! We truly miss you all!
CASEY - Vito
KYLE - Kelsey
SHANE - Kelsey and Charlie (gotta give him two cuz I know how much he misses them both)
RYAN - Maxi (we gave him options and this is what he said)
DREW - I could of sworn he said his bestest babysitter ever, his cousin Kelly!
DENISE - DEFINITELY KELLY!!!
RORY - Watching Bulls games on TV

Someone's gotta take the picture....

I think it's about time we take a family photo of all of us together!

Just a few photos for you to enjoy!