I love your Winne the Pooh quilt. It's so precious.
I just finished quilting a 40" x 70" lap quilt and I ending up basting with pins. I have a banquet table that I laid the quilt across and just basted in sections smoothing and pinning each section. I really took my time with the basting. I stitched in the ditch and started in the center of the quilt and worked my way out. Everytime I finished a line of stitching I took the quilt over to the table and examined the back for puckers. It worked great.
Have fun making your next quilt. It will get easier and more fun.