Bought the wife a Canon A620 7.1MP last anniversary, no problems, easy to use. IMO buy a fast 1 Gig memory stick, and power adapter so you can upload to a computer without draining the batteries. Also handy at parties when you want to take lots of shots or video and have a power plug nearby.
I've taken maybe 30 photographs in my life so these suck, but to give you an idea:
