When are you going and for how long? Makes a difference. Do you care about headliner rides or just rides in general? Age of daughter?
The later you go in Dec. the more crowded its going to be. If the trip is shorter than 4 days, you should probably get PHs unless you don't care about AK at all. Since you plan on getting most of your food on CL, don't waste money on snacks unless those snacks can be used as meals: exp. I don't get the spring rolls but if that floats your boat, those could be a meal.
I always go in Dec. but for the last few years, that has been around the first week. I have, in the past, gone the week before Christmas. I have never paid for any LLs and am usually able to ride anything I want. Note I said anything I want and not everything. If you go often there are probably rides you can skip and not worry about it.
What I do, no matter how many days I'm there. I have an out of state AP so I have to make park reservations but even if I don't have an AP, I always have a PH. I always have a half day the day I arrive and I use it. If my first full day is a MK party I'll make reservations for MK for that day. Arrival half day I'll start in Epcot, catch 2 or 3 rides there and hop the monorail to MK, it's usually open later the night before a party. Catch a few rides at MK, maybe grab something to eat, maybe watch the parade (I like to watch it in FL) or the FWs. If my first full day is not a MK party day, if I'm at an Epcot resort like you will be, I'll start at HS ride a few rides and make my way to Epcot and finish up there for the night. I will have made my reservations for HS for my first full day so I've already knocked out a ride or two or three there the day before. I'll finish up HS around lunch, go back to the resort to rest and head back out around 3. Probably to MK since it will open late because it's not a party night. My next day (day 2 full day) reservations will be for MK. Again, I've done a few rides the night before and it's probably a party day since the day before was not. I'll spend the morning at MK, go back to the resort, rest and head back out a little earlier then the day before to AK. AK closes earlier than the other parks so I'm only going to get a hour or two. Still catch a few things there. Next day (day 3 full day) my reservations are at AK. I'll catch whatever I didn't the night before, leave around 1 back to the resort, rest and off to whatever park I feel like going to. Probably Epcot since at this point I've only done a few hours on arrival day. That is a 3 1/2 day trip, every park and most rides done. If my first full day is not a MK party day, I just hop to MK that first half day and do MK the next morning. Rinse and repeat like above. The key is I do whatever park I'm doing the next morning a few hours the night before.
Now, if I'm there for more days I might go to some of the resorts in that time I leave the park and not go back to my resort just to look at decorations. The only plans I actually have are park reservations, if you don't have an AP it's easier because you can really just wing it. There will be long lines but I really don't mind standing in lines. If I'm not feeling it, I'll just skip that ride and move on. I love AK in the earlier hours during the holidays because the puppets are usually out. Love to be at HS at night during the holidays because I love their retro decorations.
