You've got some nice stuff there.
Forget about Manual mode, you'll miss too many shots. There are circumstances where Manual is required, but you don't know enough yet to fool with that. Lots of pros do most of their shooting in Aperture or Shutter Priority Modes. I use Aperture priority 99% of the time and it's not because I don't know how to shoot manual. (I was shooting film decades ago with a totally manual camera).
I like Digital Photography School for a wide variety of tips and lessons:
http://digital-photography-school.com/tips
You should post your photos where there are experienced photographers and ask for critique. Snapshot of The Day is a Forum here that's mainly for just sharing, but if you ask for critique we'll add it.
Dave