Welcome QuercusRubra to the wonderful world of FWS!
You'll soon be addicted.
Don't fear PPing ... a good place to start is the tutorial on QuiltersCache ... that's where I started, and then had enough of the basics to use for my FWS blocks. The more I did, the more comfortable I was with the technique.
Believe me ... two years ago, I thought PPing was ridiculous!
.... Now I can't say enough good about it.
Good Luck!