2012 Father’s Day Gift Guide – What Does Dad Really Want?

I’ve been given the great honor of being one of Rayovac’s “Power Bloggers”. It’s great timing actually, because I’ve been getting a lot of questions concerning gift ideas for dads lately. Is the dad in your life like me? When you ask what he wants for Father’s Day does he say something like, “I don’t need anything.”

Honestly, we’re not trying to be difficult. It’s just that our brains don’t work that way. If we needed something we’d have gotten it. So we leave you guessing what might make a good gift. It’s our fault if we get something we don’t want or need. Soap on a rope really is a father’s favorite gift. Honest.

Okay, let me help you out with a couple of can’t miss Father’s day gift ideas. Yes I realize they may seem a bit practical, but that’s the point. We guys like practical. And we don’t need another bottle of cheap cologne or a necktie we’ll have no occasion to wear. Trust me, read through these ideas. Dad will thank me.

A Father’s Day Gift Guide:

• Rayovac’s Virtually Indestructible LED 3C Flashlight

When I first saw this, I figured it was going to be my new go to flashlight. It’s smaller, lighter, yet brighter and much more durable than my big old D-cell light. Can you guess who claimed it as her own within moments of seeing it? Nope, not my wife, though that was a good guess. Our 3 year old daughter!

She likes having a flashlight in her room at night just in case she gets scared. Problem is, she’s been through 3 of them already. I’ll keep you posted, but I think she may have just met her match. If you can run over it with your car and drop it from 30 feet, then I’ll bet it will even survive our little girl.

• Rayovac Keychain Charger (aka: On-The-Go-Charger)

You probably know this about us dads, but we kind of like our gadgets. It’s a guy thing. I guess I’ve always thought about Rayovac as a battery company; the one who sold quality batteries that lasted at least as long as the other guys, but didn’t cost as much. They’re still that, but I’ve discovered they’re much more!

One product I love is their Keychain Charger. Ever been away from home and run out of charge on your phone? Always happens at the worst times, right? Slip this little guy on your keyring and when you need it, plug it into your phone for an additional 45 minutes of talk time; use and recharge 100s of times!

• Rayovac 5 LED 3AAA Headlight

I wish I were able to tell you that I use this headlight (if you’ve not seen one, it’s a lightweight light you wear like a cap on your head) while working in the garage stripping and rebuilding the engine on a 1964 ½ Ford Mustang, but the truth is a bit less macho. Remember me telling you about my 3 year old girl earlier?

It seems leprechauns live in our back yard. Her “grampy” who grew up on a farm in Ireland told her tales of the wee people. So some nights she grabs her Indestructible LED 3C Flashlight and I don my 5 LED Headlight we we go out in search! We’ve not caught any yet, but my hands will be free when it happens.

But that’s what being a dad is all about. Whether it’s sharing an imaginary tea party with Pooh bear, or a search for a leprechauns lost pot of gold in the back yard. Our kids need us dads to be a little bit less focused on paying the bills or catching that game on TV… and a bit more focused on them.

A brief memory of my late father, as Father’s Day approaches:

I’m American, but my family lived in The Netherlands for a couple of years when I was young. Instead of Santa Claus, they have Sinterklaas… and instead of stockings on the fireplace you put your wooden shoes (yes I had some) outside your door on December 5th with some carrots for Sinterklaas’s horse.

After putting our wooden shoes outside our front door, my brother and I got ready for bed. A bit later we heard a sound at the door and turned in time to see a figure flash past the window to the left of the front door. There was no doubt in our young minds that we’d just seen the Dutch Sinterklaas.

When we opened the door we found our carrots gone, and our shoes filled with chocolate and each also contained a flashlight. My first flashlight! Obviously it was my dad we saw in the window, and clearly it was he who picked out the flashlights as gifts. I’ve never forgotten it. I guess it really is a guy thing.

How are you celebrating the dads in your life this Father’s Day?

Visit Rayovac’s website for a huge line of products any dad will love. Please note: I was provided some wonderful Rayovac products to review and compensation for my time in writing this blog, but the opinions provided are solely my own. You know me. If I don’t love something I won’t write about it.