Take it for what it is worth but I would suggest that you take a look at Microsoft Visual Studio Express as a Development environment (it is free from Microsoft) and start to play around with C#. It actually comes with Visual Basic, C++ and Web Developer all bundled in.
It is generally a little easier than C and C++ and the IDE helps to guide you along the way.
You can start off with simple applications and then move to the "GUI" WIndows based applications.
Visual Studio 2010 Express ISO Images | Microsoft Visual Studio