Hi Julia,
I used to use Access when I worked full time (before kids) and in the old days I programmed in DBASEIII (an ancient program). I love to do it, but I'm just getting back in the world of automation with my business and recently took a class on Access 2007 (since I now have Office 2007). It was a whole new world. I loved the class, but may take an additional class before actually offerring the service to my clients. I always thought I was really good at database management, but I'd like a little more under my belt. You may want to look up classes at your local high schools and colleges. One of our local colleges offerred a 6 hour class I took 2 weeks ago for $130! You can't go wrong there! You can also dabble in Access by creating your own Christmas card database. Best of luck!
-Diane