By Maryan Pelland

Wedding bells this summer for your favorite grandchild and the gift has to be perfect. You daydream about shopping - fine linens, china, cut crystal. That's appropriate, if it's really what you want to do, but experts encourage you to expand your thinking.

"Today's bride and groom are older and more settled than in days gone by," says Evelyn Browning, of Browning Bridal Services of Geneva, IL.

The average couple does not marry right out of high school or even after college. "They are typically, 25, 26 years old. Twenty years ago, couples were more likely to be 18 or 19," Browning recalls.

She says today's bride or groom may have townhome or condo. Both probably lived on their own for a time, and they almost certainly have some of the typical items given as wedding presents: Dishes, linens, kitchen basics, furniture.

Browning sees fewer gifts at weddings, and more cash. She believes todays couples have a simpler lifestyle, are more mobile, and may not want the responsibility of caring for fancy household baubles.

Other experts agree that many couples may prefer money to gifts. But some givers see money as impersonal, requiring no thought and allowing no expression of personal involvement in the giving.
So what can a doting grandma or grandpa do to make the special day memorable?

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