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Alicia, on this specific photo there seems to be some distortion in the head -- it seems to be stretched sideways, especially at the top. I wonder if using a wide angle setting on your lens might have done that. Maybe that could have caused the distortion in the chair in the other photo you showed, too.
Point and shoot cameras with built in zoom lenses often have a setting for "wide angle" when the lens is not zoomed out (ie when the lens is pulled all the way back in). If you're using this kind of lens try zooming in (towards the subject) one or two steps to get past the wide angle settings and to a more natural lens setting, something around 50 mm or equivalent. (Check your camera's documentation on this.)
Maybe shoot a test roll with your camera and see what kind of distortion you get around the edges of the frame at different zoom and non-zoom settings. You can see this distortion effect most clearly if you try photographing one of your paintings from straight on: there will be a noticeable bowing-out effect on the sides of the canvas when you're in the wide angle settings.
As far as the child's expression, one tip is to use something to distract the child's attention and get an alert, "expectant" expression. Maybe a toy or a treat, if the mom is okay with that, held behind you by someone else, or held in your other hand if you can manage the camera with one hand.
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