I'm by no means a soap guru, but I've suffered lots of trial and error.

I have found that there is a happy temperature medium when it comes to preventing acceleration, for me it works best if I soap between 100 and 120 degrees. Higher or lower than that and the soap accelerates even when I have a fragrance that's behaved well in the past. Making milk soap is hard for me, because I do try to start at a cooler temp but sometimes I wait a little too long and can't swirl or do anything pretty. You will figure things out as you go. I recommend printing each recipe and taking notes on each batch you make to keep in a binder, or do it on the computer if that's easier. When I first started I even took pictures of each batch! It helps a lot if you have issues to look back and see what you might have done differently. Plus, when you have a recipe that you absolutely love, you can repeat it easily, the ones you hate you can learn from.
Good luck and have fun with it!
And BTW, I still like making M&P sometimes, it doesn't make you a weenie, lol. There are some things MP is great for, like intricate designs and when you need something fast. I get the MP soap from BB because it lathers wonderfully, almost as good as my CP!