You finally get to stay on property!

I am so excited for you! Gotta love that Fuzzy Disney Math!
Good resort choices. And the timeshare looks beautiful too. We've stayed at both WDW resorts. We were at POR for a week in January and AKL for a few days in June. Really liked both places. (Although we liked AKL more, but both were

).
For room requests:
POR we were in the Partierre Place building, which was one of the mansions and just across the river bridge from the main building. We really liked that location, as it was close to the main building and also close to POFQ (a nice stroll for a beignet in the morning). But I hear that other Dis-ers like the other section (the Alligator Bayou/non-mansions). I don't know much about that. But we were quite happy with our location: the mansions are pretty to look at and the river is right there in front of you.
AKL: did you get a savanna-view room? I hope so, it's totally worth it! We LOVED stepping out on the balcony and watching the giraffes, zebras, etc!

The rooms themselves are beautiful too. We made our room request based on the Unofficial Guide to WDW's recommendations. It was 3rd-4th floor, Zebra or Kudu Trail, facing the inner savanna, I believe. We ended up on the 4th floor in Zebra Trail, facing the inner savanna. We were quite far down the hall, but the view was fantastic! Also, having several great restaurants right in the same resort as you is awesome! (Boma, Jiko, Sanaa, not to mention Zebra Domes from Mara!)
You'll love the resorts, I think!
Angelyn, thanks for the fun pictures from the past! Also, I love the picture you painted of the WDW-planning "war room"!