Replicating callouts from MS Word

I'm returning to Frame after 15 years, and while I'm managing to figure quite a few things out via help and google, I'm interested in improving my efficiency.

I've searched and found a few articles about replicating callouts from MS Word, so in general I have the impression that I need to use text frames to create them. I spent some time fiddling with settings, because I want the background colour to be grey. I got that, but it's very tight to the text, which I don't like. I want a surrounding area of grey. I found that I can add this by putting the text frame into an anchored frame, and literally using the anchored frame like a picture frame to give me more surrounding grey. I've attached a picure that shows the boundary of the text frame within the anchored frame. Hopefully this clarifies what I'm explaning.

Question 1: Am I missing a setting on the text frame that let's me create a larger area around the text that will also get the background colour?

Next, I've got a picture in the center of the page, and I'm putting 4 of these callouts (ie. anchored frames) down each side of the picture. I'm finding that lining up the anchored frames is painful - yes I can turn on the rulers and the grid, but there doesn't appear to be any snap-to feature, or any control over the spacing of the grid lines. I found the align control, but it doesn't seem to work with anchored frames (or I'm just doing something wrong, since the help doesn't really tell me how to select the objects I'm trying to align).

Question 2: Am I missing something obvious here? Or is it really just an "eyeball it" scenario?