bigjohn, I've had a Sony DSC-P72 (3.2 megapixels and optical zoom) for a couple of years and we are very pleased with it.

It's been replaced by the DSC-P73 here and looks like its 4.1 mp now and much less than I paid for mine. A little googling might get you a pretty good deal. I ran across this site last month and its pretty good for finding specific equipment, prices and etailer ratings. Wish I had found it years ago.