Hi Heather!
Thank you for sending in your question to the Walt Disney World Moms Panel.
I have two boys, ages 12 and 7. When they were younger, their favorite activities beyond the theme parks included:
- Visiting Disney's Animal Kingdom and watching the animals right outside the hotel
- Spending time in the resort hotel pool
- Visiting Downtown Disney
- Visiting Fort Wilderness, and especially going on a wagon ride or a horse drawn carriage
- Going to the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Review in Fort Wilderness
- Having dinner at the Whispering Canyon Cafe in the Wilderness Lodge
- Dining at 1900 Park Fare in the Grand Floridian
With young children, you will probably be spending most of your time in the Magic Kingdom. There are a lot of rides and shows that can be enjoyed by the whole family. You might consider staying in a Magic Kingdom monorail resort to give you easy access to your resort hotel for an afternoon nap or a break.
By the way, since it is your first visit, I recommend picking up the tour book "The Complete Walt Disney World" by Julie and Mike Neal. It is a great book for first time visitors as it is full of information and tips, but is not overwhelming. It is also a beautiful book, full of color photographs. It will give you a good feel for everything there is to do at Walt Disney World.
I hope this helps in your planning! Please write back with more questions!