Hi Chris:

Welcome to FlyerTalk!

I know you want to be able to use points and stay at Holiday Inns, but I recommend you also consider an apartment which will give you much more flexibility than a hotel. I recommend you take a look at the one- and two-bedroom apartments that Vacation in Paris has to offer. You might be surprised at how reasonable an apartment can be compared to a hotel, and you have much more flexibility (and tremendous cost savings options) when it comes to meals if you have a kitchen--especially with kids. A one bedroom will usually accomodate two people sharing a bed in the bedroom and two people sharing a pull-put couch in the living room. With two kids, I'd opt for a two-bedroom place. Many of the apartments have a clothes washer which would enable everyone to pack lighter.

Also, it sounds like the 2010 Rick Steves Paris guide would be a good fit for you and your family for this visit. His hand-drawn museum maps and many of his tips enable you to plan out your museum visits, etc., in advance as it can be overwhelming to plan your visit to the Louvre when you are standing in the Louvre, which is what I did the first time I was there You may also be interested in his free museum tour (Louvre and d'Orsay, as I recall) podcasts that you (and your family members) can download from his web site and put on your mp3 players (assuming everyone has one).

Additionally, you might consider using the Metro to get around--at least during the day. It's cheap and fast, and your kids will probably have fun helping map out the routes.