Hi there Ran,
Good idea with the FETs, thanks!
I had seen a reference to them in Grumpy_Mike's power tutorial too and plan to check out something like the IRL520 later, once I got this circuit working.. datasheet: http://www.hobbyengineering.com/specs/IR-irl520.pdf
Speaking of the
complexity of wiring
this is my problem, as I've yet to successfully run these LED strips 
Any advice on my current (no pun intended!) schematic to get them glowing also welcome!
Link: http://richcarthew.com/images/uln2003_post.html
Many thanks,
Rich