Father's Day might bring forth power tools, fishing gear and heartfelt cards from daughters everywhere. But in addition to these tokens of our affection, we spend more time than you'd think working on a larger tribute... finding a man who measures up to our dads.

What is it, exactly, that fathers have done to steal our hearts? How can a potential mate ever compete? The key is to discover what, specifically, we respect about our fathers. And then find out if your new guy has what it takes.

On our side. When the going got tough, we could count on our dads to look as us in bewilderment and administer the needed hug or words of encouragement. He might not have had a clue what we were blubbering about, but we knew he was in our corner. If we related a story to him about a near car collision that was clearly our fault, dad said, "the other guy was obviously going way too fast."

Reliable. If he said he would pick us up, he was there. If the dog had a vet appointment or the car needed an oil change, dad took care of it. We never had to ask four times (although our moms might have). Our dads had an air of responsibility about them. We could rely on this man to be an adult at all times, and this kind of capability is ardently sought-after.

Genuine. Dad never minced words when giving his true opinions about things. We were not often privy to his work persona, so we only got to see a true-blue dad in relaxation mode. Having a family doesn't leave a whole lot of time for pretension. This is why phony dates who try to impress us with French vocabulary and flowery wine descriptions start off on the wrong foot.

Easygoing. After chasing us during the terrible twos and seeing most of his nice things spilled on or broken, dad came away from the parenting war zone a tad more easy-going than when he went into it. By rolling with the punches and staying flexible, dad even managed to laugh at our antics from time to time. As we all know, life can throw punches that have nothing to do with two-year-olds, and we want a man who won't fall apart during a change of plans.

Selfless. We knew dad put our needs before his own. And we tried not to take advantage of it... too often.

Whether it was a particularly bad dance move or joke that endeared our dads to us, you'll have to face the fact that no man can really compete. After all, nobody will get a second chance to teach us how to ride a bike, do a swan dive, or catch a grounder. All a man can hope for is to measure up with children of his own.

Does your guy measure up? If not, maybe it's time to look for someone new. Start a quick search and search for the guy that meets all of your criteria.