Photography Guys....Need Advice

[coreseller]

Hey Guys....I need a bit of advice from those of you who are up on Camera Equipment. A long time back when I was into phtography I had the obligatory Nikon 35mm set-up with all the lenses, etc. Now I got a few kids and for the last decade or so I've been using a smallish Canon Point and Shoot due to it's portability (fits in my front pocket), now I am looking to buy something better. A few years back I had a "Pro" take pic's of the kids (which turned out GREAT, well worth the money spent) and she used and recommended a Nikon D40X. I would like to purchase something to take to sporting, familty , etc. events to get better pics for the next few years or so while they're still young. I don't really want to cart around a grocery bag's worth of crap but would like something that grabs nicer pics than the PAS that we've been using. Obviously I'm looking at Digital Format. Any advice? Thanks in advance......Mark.