You don't need a machine with all the bells and whistles to quilt. Yes, the bells and whistles are nice. I have a simple Kenmore $200 at Sears, and it gets the job done. I will probably never have the machine of my dreams. But, that's OK. I'm still going to quilt.
I guess maybe you need to sit down with your wife and discuss options and maybe saving for the machine she'd really like to have. And in the meantime, get lots of practice in on a basic machine. It's awful hard to settle when you've test driven the cadalac. But hey, everyone has to start somewhere.
Good luck. I hope you get lots of helpful hints!