Welcome to the biz!
Now, the most important thing for the first year is learning how to do things the right way, so you will not have to re-learn (or teach) them later. I strongly recommend attending a Stock Show University clinic put on by Sullivan Supply Co. They will cover many of the basics, and maybe some stuff you don't need yet, but it's good to get as much info as possible. Take notes if you attend. There are also some fine videos put out by Mr. Kirk Stierwalt that would be extremely advantageous to you. Also, we did a lot of video-ing when I was young so I could see how I did things and what I could do to improve. We did this at home and at shows.
As far as your specific questions- You should be doing both as often as you can. Washing often right now isn't terribly important, but you should be blowing the dirt out of her calf's hair as much as possible. We start shedding out the winter hair towards the end of March and really start working hair hard the 2nd week of April for summer shows. Lead and work with the calf as much as you can, doing at least something with it every day if at all possible. You can do things like practising with a show stick, brushing it, getting it used to feed pans and buckets, and other things the calf will need to know by the time you show.
This site has a wealth of info, and a great search function as well. if you can't find what you're looking for, don't be afraid to ask!