I would first decide on the number of days you would like to spend on your trip and then purchase a park hopper ticket for those days.
That will allow you to go from one park to another in the same day, so you don't have to miss out, and realy get a bang for your buck.
My favorite resort is Animal Kingdom Lodge. i recomend no less then 3 days for a disney vacation.
Take 2 days to do the parks and one day to relax and enjoy the resort facilities, if you can do more days try to spread them so you have a break day every two days. this way you would still be able to walk the parks and would not have to be caried away. :)