Hey, what's wrong with being a newbie? :P
Now.. I'd give all of this a 3/10. There is simply alot of room for improvement, and everything looks too flat and generic.
First of all, the letters.
I would advice firstly to give all the borders inside the letter sprites who are facing us some texture, as in, giving them lighter lines instead of dark ones. (2)
Not only that, but the lines seem all jagged. Some Anti-aliasing would work well in this. Here (3), I gave the inner ligher lines some AA.
Now, those thick dark outlines were the ones causing most trouble on this. When removed, I could now lighten the top outlines as they were the ones recieving most light. (4) Note the darker looking AAing at the bottom lines too.
Also note, when joining the letters, dark outlines should not overlap; this done for a smoother effect. (5)
And last, brought the thick outlines back in case it was intended as a cartoony effect. Also added AA to the inner parts of the outlines. (6) Just remember that the ballons would need the thick effect too, if it really was intended.
And for the ballons, well.. They might need some more contrast between the 2 inner shades, to make them noticeable, and less saturation too. Perhaps a highlight on the top for a shiny effect.
