LOL!! Ginger! That is totally cool...Did you use the Texturizer, Despeckle and Liquify? (just guessing, LOL!!) You should record a custom Action for this design.
Ginger, that's the best way to learn - just play around! Pretty soon someone will say "Can you do this?" and you'll know exactly what they are talking about!
That first one looks like the dreaded... Diablo Kitty!
The third one reminds me of that famous painting called The Scream and the last one somehow looks like a dented chrome-plated kitty, but in color. Photoshop is so much fun isn't it?
You can buy it at most good computer stores, but the best way that I know of is at www.adobe.com. My office just purchased the Design Collection, which they have at an AMAZING deal for $1000 for Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat and InDesign (so I can be all professional with our marketing materials!). Otherwise, Photoshop runs right around $600. It's pretty pricey, but it is an amazing program.