What a beautiful quilt!
I am sure you have it quilted by now, but I would like to give you some food for thought (I didn't read the whole thread, so forgive me if this has already been mentioned.
Quilting (making sure that three layers of material stay together and don't shift around, lessening the life of a quilt) is purely practical. As mentioned, it holds the batting in place so the quilt can be washed and stays cuddly and warm all over. It keeps the front and back from going in separate directions while being watched.
The more quilting on an item, the stiffer it becomes. most battings have a recommended spacing between rows of stitches (or patterns) ... some are as small as 2", others as large as 10 inches. This is given so you know how much you need to quilt to keep the batting in one piece.
However! Since most quilters get a bit bored with straight lines, the quilting patterns came in to being. There are really no rules for what goes where, only that the quilting be as even as possible ... for example - - do not make a lot of quilting at the first of your quilt and then get tired and start scattering it here and there. The more balanced the amount of stitching, the better the quilt will wear.
And, you will find yourself doing more quilting and more intricate quilting as you become more experienced.
Just a really neat quilt you created <wave>