Good luck this weekend. I just made my first quilt in late October. Everyone in the local quilt shop recommended that I just stitch in the ditch, but I think that can look really sloppy if it is not totally accurate and so is more difficult and frustrating for a beginner. If your top will look nice with it, I recommend stippling as a first quilting project -- it is really really fun and exhilarating (and masks mistakes pretty well, too ;)). But careful, it's addictive!!