New To DSLR With A Question

I have never had a DSLR camera and I've only had this one for 3 days. I am just starting, learning, playing around with settings, etc.

I just got a d5100 and so far just have the kit lense. The light that comes on when the shutter button is pressed is VERY bright. I cannot take a single photo of my daughter with her eyes open because of this. She sees the light and squints. Is there a way to turn it off but still have a flash used? I've flipped through the dial of pre-set settings but they all have that insanely bright light if I want to use a flash. The user manual was of no use. Please help!

Its the AF Assist light...dig through your menu, I believe you can turn it off. It only comes on when there isn't adequate light in the space, therefore it comes on to help the camera see the focus point.

You might also want to uncheck the "red eye" option off. I don't know where it is since I don't have that particular model but I suspect within some flash adjustments.

Joe is right, this is the AF-assist light...and yes, it can be very bright and annoying.

Press the Menu button
Scroll through the options until you get to Custom Settings (pencil icon)
a2 AF-assist illuminator

You can turn it on/off. Just a word of caution, though: with this off, don't expect your camera to focus very well indoors or lower lighting conditions. You'll either need to provide more ambient light or get used to using manual focus.

Or shoot something besides portraits...