Good luck with this! We have two kids the same ages (boys). We have taken "small trips", anywhere from 1-3 nights in hotel stays.
The ONLY one that even remotely worked for us, in terms of EVERYONE getting some sleep, was when we stayed in a 1 bedroom suite. We put the kids in the living room/parlor area, which had a pull out sleeper sofa. We brought along a toddler aerobed (thanks to suggestions from fellow Disers!) for the 3 year old. He slept next to the sofabed, sort of blocked off from our other DS, since our boys cannot share a bed, due to our older DS's issues (he has Autism). There was a door that completely closed off the master bedroom so DH and I could "go away" at bedtime, like at home. There was a t.v. in there, as well as the bathroom, so we could hang out in there after the kids went to bed, no problem! Once they fell asleep, we'd prop open the door so we could hear if they woke up and if they needed to come use the bathroom in the middle of the night. Worked PERFECTLY! Our kids are VERY schedule oriented. They meltdown badly if they are kept up too much past bedtime. They go to sleep around 7:30-8:00 and that is just too early for DH and I.
That trip was our THIRD trial in a hotel. Prior to that, our hotel stays were HORRIBLE. We tried one room at Disney's Grand Californian for 3 nights...total hell. We tried one night at a Sheraton in San Diego. Even worse, although the room was MUCH bigger. It was to the point where the ONLY one who slept was the three year old, because he can sleep through anything. But, our older son would stay up FOREVER since DH and I would stay up, and then he would wake randomly in the middle of the night and just be wide awake for HOURS, and since DH and I were in the same room, he would just think "party time!". This did NOT happen at all in the suite. He would wake up, think "I'm alone", and he'd go back to sleep, just like at home.
After that trip, we realized that we just need suite or villa type accommodations for our family. It stinks, cause it's $$$, but that's what it takes, otherwise NO ONE has a good time because everyone is cranky and tired from NO SLEEP. A lot of families can all sleep in one room, but we are not one of them, at least at this point in our lives. We realized that we will just have to travel less often in order to be able to afford those types of accommodations.
I would HIGHLY recommend switching to a one bedroom DVC villa, if you can. You can probably get into the Bay Lake Towers for this fall, since they still have a lot of availability for non members because they haven't sold all their contracts yet. It's still on the monorail, and honestly, I think it's a better place to stay than the Poly. Your parents could get a cheaper room at the CR resort in the wings, or a Bay View tower room, for about the same price as a room at Poly...
Or, if you elect to stay at Poly, my advice to you would be, perhaps, request connecting rooms. You could hang out in your parent's room until the kids go to sleep. When they do, you can probably go back into your room and turn on the t.v. quietly and the kids will not notice. I'd put them to sleep in the daybed and the bed next to the balcony. You and your DH should sleep in the bed closest to the bathroom. That way, you won't be walking past the bed if you need to use the bathroom/vanity area while they are asleep. Also, the t.v. is closer to that bed, I think. You can also hang out on the balcony until the kids go to bed. A lot of parents do that. Just make sure your kids don't lock you out! My son would do something like that...
Good luck!
