first time at disney

This is an awesome community that will be able to answer all of your questions!! A trip calender will come in handy for deciding what parks to go to on which days--I use this one from Undercover Tourist, though others may have other recommendations:
http://www.undercovertourist.com/planning/when-to-visit/disney-world-crowds-calendar_february-2013.html#disney-opening-hours

It gives a crowd rating from 1-10 (1 being least crowded, 10 being most) and color rating (green-least crowded, yellow-medium, red-most) for each park on each date, plus the holidays and events going on that day that may peak crowds. The refurbishments (attractions that will be closed during that period of time) will also be listed.

What character dining experiences are you planning on doing? Would love to hear more about your plans!

As for the rides that are "musts", it really depends on the kids, but since you are traveling with young kids, some of the attractions I would recommend are:
In Magic Kingdom: The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, the new Fantasyland expansion, it's a small world, Dumbo, Aladdin's Flying Carpets, Peter Pan's Flight, and Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin

Hollywood Studios: Voyage of The Little Mermaid; Toy Story Mania!; Muppet*Vision 3-D; Beauty and the Beast

Animal Kingdom: Kilimanjaro Safari, Triceratops Spin, Finding Nemo: The Musical, Festival of the Lion King

Epcot: The Seas with Nemo and Friends, Turtle Talk with Crush

Good luck!

jdemay1 to what we think is one of the nicest forums on the web! Just remember that those are anticipated crowd levels and not actual crowd levels. Another tip, don't try to do everything because it's not going to happen and it could make you miserable. Just go with the flow. If your kids start getting tired, take a break, don't keep dragging them around the parks, we see that happen to to often and that makes everyone miserable then.

Look at maps ahead of time, so you get more of an idea what is where. Are you staying on property and if you are where?

jdemay1 to our little piece of Disney heaven. I agree with Mrhub. You will not be able to do and see everything so don't stress yourself over it. It's just important to plan ahead but be flexible.

Yeah, I did mean they were anticipated. You definitely can't tell everything but if you're like me and like to over-plan you'll find them comforting. Otherwise, follow their advice--flexibility and being laid-back is just as important as having a ground plan!!

I agree, don't try to do it all in one trip. Take breaks in the afternoon to either nap or relax by the pool.

Animal Kingdom: I definitely agree with Kilimanjaro Safari and Festival of the Lion King! Also, since they are younger they might like the dinosaur dig thing too!

Magic Kingdom: Mickey's Philharmonic (I think is what it's called) would be cool for them too....we've wanted to go on Peter Pan's flight, but the wait is normally long, so we went for Mickey instead, and it was so fun!

Epcot: Definitely Finding Nemo for them! I will say, too, that we saw a really cool gymnastics show in China there, and it was neat to watch!

I probably missed it, but where are you staying? Animal Kingdom was fun with all of the animals, but any of the value ones would be awesome too!

My girls are young, will be 4 1/2 and 22 Months when we go next week. Not including this upcoming trip, my 4 year old has already been to WDW 4 times and DL twice. The 22 Month old has been to WDW twice and DL once. It takes FOREVER to get through the parks, you will not get to everything. Just know that, and enjoy that. The diaper will not need changing when the others need potty breaks, and vice versa, plan on spending a lot of time in the bathrooms.

Other than that, prioritize, and go around in order. Don't waste time bouncing from one end of the park to the other just to hit the "must rides" first. Mark your map with the attractions that you would "like" to do and where your meals will be, and that will make it plenty easy to not rush and enjoy your visit. Don't set your sights on what you HAVE to get in. Over planning and tight schedules can cause stress and disappointment when something goes awry.

Not for the 1-yr old, but the 5 and 6 yo should definitely do Soarin. If they meet the height requirement (my 3 yo brother did) then you have to do it. They have a baby this where you can get an extra fast pass. So your 5/6 yo will get to ride twice and each of you guys get to ride once! It's a great system. Don't skip on that ride.

Welcome to the best Disney board around