Begin by standing on a comfortable surface, where you have plenty of room at each side. With a 5-lb potato sack in each hand, extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can. Try to reach a full minute, and then relax. Each day you’ll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer.

After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb potato sacks. Then try 50-lb potato sacks and then eventually try to get to where you can lift a 100-lb potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute. (I’m at this level.)

After you feel confident at that level, put a potato in each of the sacks.

Antique Road Show Style Antique Appraisals

Apr. 14: Certified Appraiser Joan Bunn, owner of “Joan & Associates, Rockford Michigan will be at the Sand Lake United Methodist Education Building, 45 Sixth St. Sand Lake on Saturday April 14 from 10 am to 4 pm. There is a $10 donation for each verbal appraisal. There will also be a bake sale. #14,15p

Vegas Night

Apr. 14: The Cedar Springs High School Senior All Night Party is hosting Vegas Night on Sat. April 14^th from 6 pm to ? at Tri County Eagles, 32 E. Lake St., Sand Lake.  #15

Roast Beef Dinner

Apr. 15: The Rockford Veterans of Foreign Wars at 4195 – 13 Mile Rd. is hosting a roast beef dinner on the third Sunday of the month, April 15th.  Adults $8, children $3.50. The best dinner in town! Take outs and deliveries are available. For deliveries cal 616-866-2675 by 11:30 the day of the dinner.  #15

Red Hat Society

Apr. 16: Ladies, age 50 and older, are invited to join our Red Hast of Red Flannel Town group. We meet once a month and have lots of fun! Call Minnie Morey at 616-481-6194 to learn about the group and to join in on the fun. #14,15p

Dinner at the Legion

Apr. 16: American Legion, 80 Main St. Cedar Springs, is hosting a baked chicken dinner on Monday, April 16, from 5 – 7 pm. Included will be mashed potatoes, stuffing, veggies, rolls, dessert and drink. All dinners are $9, children $4. Take out is available. #15

Celebrate Spring!

Apr. 16: A Community Night Out Fundraiser for the Sand Lake/ Nelson Township Library and Sand Lake Elementary will be held in Rockford, Monday April 16 from 5 – 10 pm. go to www.kdl.org for more information and coupons to participate. Or stop in to the Sand Lake KDL Branch, 88 Eighth St.  #15

Used Book Sale

Apr.19-21: The Friends of the Timothy C. Hauenstein Reynolds Township Library is having a used book sale on Thurs. April 19 from 10 am – 7 pm, Fri. April 20 from 10 am – 5 pm and Sat. April 21 from 10 am – 2 pm. at the library, 117 W. Williams, Howard City.  #15

Annual Spring Rummage Sale

Apr. 19,20: Resurrection Lutheran Church, 180 Northland Dr., Sand Lake, is having their annual Springs Rummage Sale on April 19 and 20 from 9 am – 5 pm. #15,16p

Rummage Sale for Relay for Life

April 21: The Cedar Steppers will be holding a Rummage Sale on Saturday, April 21^st, from 9:00am – 4:00pm at Cedar View Elementary.  All proceeds will be donated to Rockford Relay for Life benefitting the American Cancer Society.   We are also looking for more donations for the sale.  We will accept good, clean items such as clothing, household items, toys etc. You may drop off your donations at Cedar View Elementary on Friday, April 20 from 3:30pm – 8:00pm. Please keep us in mind when you are doing your Spring cleaning and donating your used items.  The Sale is for a great cause and your donations will help save lives! All items left after our sale will be donated to R1TS Resale. #15,16p

Lion’s Club Pancake Breakfast

Aor. 21: The Cedar Springs Lions Club is hosting a pancake breakfast every third Saturday of each month thru April. Come to the Cedar Springs United Methodist Church located on the corner of Main & Church Streets on Saturday April 21, from 7 am to 11 am, for an all-you-can-eat breakfast including pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, juice and coffee. Adults $6.00, Seniors $5.00, Children under 12 free. Proceeds to assist sight conservation. #15

Michigan Back Roads – A Road Trip Show

Apr. 21: Enjoy an entertaining program about a road trip to unique destination on the back roads of Michigan. The presentation is based on the books by Ron Rademacher.  Sat. April 21 at 2 pm at the Algoma Township Hall, 10531 Algoma Ave., Rockford. Presented by Algoma Township Historical Society. #15

Spaghetti Supper

Apr. 21: South Ensley United Methodist Church women’s group will host a Spaghetti Supper on Sat. April 21 from 5 to 7 pm. The church is located on the corner of 136^th St. and Cypress Ave.  #15

Craft Show in Coral

Apr. 21: Craft Show at Coral Community Center on April 21 starts at 9 am until 2 pm. Sub sandwich lunch will be for sale and there is a bake sale. Funds to benefit Coral Fire Department Auxiliary.  #15

Cow Plop Raffle and Family Fun Event

Apr. 21: The Cedar Springs Rotary Club presents the 2^nd Cow Plop Raffle and Family Fun Night on May 5^th starting at 2 pm at White Creek Lumber. Raffle Tickets for the Cow Plop drawing are on sale until April 21^st for $5 each and can be purchased at Independent Bank, ChoiceOne Bank, Cedar Springs Area Parks and Recreation, Weingartz, White Creek Lumber and Gebhardt Insurance. #15,16p

Events at HCNC

Apr. 22:  Earth Day Walk on Sun. April 22 from 8 am to 10 am. Enjoy a gorgeous walk/ excursion through the nature center’s scenic trails, in the beauty of the morning light – hosted by a Tour Guide with a wealth of knowledge on nature and all it has to offer. Light refreshments will be served! Donation: $4 adults, $3 seniors, or $15 family (four or more). FREE Volunteer Work – Earth Day from 10 am to 2 pm. Ages 5 – 99 – Please come help HCNC with our spring clean up this volunteer workday. We will spread mulch, clean our waterways, pick up winter debris, plant and paint. Lunch will be served (hotdogs, chips, cookies and drinks). Howard Christensen Nature Center, 16190 Red Pine Dr. Kent City. If interested simply email cperski@lilysfrogpad.com.  #15

Proceeds from several upcoming events will go toward the Cedar Springs Public Library’s building fund matching grant challenge.

April 9-15: Bob and Betty Truesdale, of the Amish Furniture and Gifts Warehouse, will donate 15 percent of furniture sales and 5 percent of gift purchases made from April 9 to 15, to the Cedar Springs Library Building Fund. The person who spends the most will receive a trip for two to Sarah’s Amish Dining Room for an amazing all you can eat fish fry on April 20. (See advertisement on page 18.)

April 12: Bingo at the American Legion in Cedar Springs on April 12 at 5 p.m. Proceeds to benefit the Cedar Springs Library Building Fund.

April 14: 90 Minutes of Zumba with Kate Rehmus, Saturday, April 14 at 9:30 a.m. at the Cedar Springs Middle School. $10 class fee will benefit the Cedar Springs Library Building Fund.

The Cedar Springs High School Jazz band will be the opening act at Jake’s Music Festival, at 4 p.m. on April 14, at the Wealthy Theatre in Grand Rapids.

The band will be part of a lineup that includes rockabilly, Celtic, experimental violin, rock and roll, Creole, singer/songwriter, and jazz—a little something for everyone. The event is free (donations are accepted) and runs until 11 p.m. All proceeds go to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.

For more information or to see the complete lineup, go to www.jakesmusicfestival.blogspot.com or visit the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/JakesMusicFestival.

A 67-year-old woman went to the doctor’s office and her doctor if he would give her birth control pills. “Birth control pills!” said the doctor with a laugh, “I don’t think you need to worry about birth control at your age.”

“Oh, but they help me sleep better,” explained the woman.

“How on earth do birth control pills help you sleep better?” asked the doctor.

“Well,” she explained, “I put one in my granddaughter’s orange juice every morning and I sleep so much better.”

Community Good Friday Service

Apr. 6: The Cedar Springs Ministerial Association would like to invite you to come together with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ and worship our great God on Friday, April 6th at The Springs Church. The service will begin at 7 pm. Nursery will be provided for newborn – 3 years. Kids Church will be provided for 4 years to 4th grade. The Springs Church is located at 135 N. Grant St. Cedar Springs.  #14

Eggstravaganza

Apr. 7: Saturday, April 7, Eggstravaganza (Easter Egg Hunt+) from Noon to approximately 2 pm at Courtland Oakfield United Methodist Church, 10295 Myers Lake Ave. NE. Easter Egg Hunt and crafts begin at Noon. Free lunch at 1 pm for all participants. Stay for a special Easter Story after lunch. Questions? Call 616-866-4298.  #13,14p

TOPS weight loss support group

April 10: Take off pounds sensibly (TOPS), a non-profit weight loss sport group for men and women, meets every Tuesday at the Resurrection Lutheran Church in Sand Lake. Your first visit is free so come check out what TOPS can do to help you reach your weight loss goals! Exercise 8-8:30am (optional), weigh-ins from 8:30am–9am and the meeting starts at 9:15am. In case of inclemeent weather, meetings are cancelled if Tri-County or Cedar Sporings schools are closed. Call Martha at 696-1039 for more information. #14

Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University 

Apr. 11: Solon Center Wesleyan Church offers Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. FPU is a life-changing program on personal finance. It is designed to teach families how to get out of debt, stay out of debt and build wealth. All material is biblically based and taught via entertaining video by New York Times best-selling author Dave Ramsey.  Classes begin Wednesday, April 11th @ 6:00 PM.  The cost is $89 for the FPU kit and includes lifetime membership to FPU and their resources.  Please call the church office to register and order your kit at 616-696-3229.  The church is located at 15671 Algoma Ave. in Cedar Springs, just N. of 19 Mile Road. #14

Community Conversations on Education

Apr. 11: The Center of Michigan is holding 250 Community Conversations  throughout the state. Conversations are open to the public and focus on pre-K – 12 Education. The Center for Michigan specifically wants to hear from parents, students, educators and employers on what is and is not working within our Education system. Please consider attending! Tyrone Township Community Room, 28 E. Muskegon St., Kent City, on Wednesday April 11 from 6 to 7:30 pm. Hosted by Heart of West Michigan United Way. RSVP by calling 616-752-8617 or cmathis@hwmuw.org. #14

Antique Road Show Style Antique Appraisals

Apr. 14: Certified Appraiser Joan Bunn, owner of “Joan & Associates”, Rockford Michigan will be at the Sand Lake United Methodist Education Building, 45 Sixth St. Sand Lake on Saturday April 14 from 10 am to 4 pm. There is a $10 donation for each verbal appraisal. There will also be a bake sale. #14,15p

Superheroes Away!

Apr. 14: You won’t want to miss this celebration of all things super! Come dressed as your favorite superhero and get ready to have fun listening to a story, playing games and making your own comic book. For all ages. Saturday, April 14 at 1:30 pm at the Sand Lake/ Nelson Township Library, 88 Eighth St. Sand Lake.  #14

Events at Howard Christensen Nature Center

Apr. 14&15: Green Fashion Show will be held Saturday April 14 from 1 – 4 pm. Enter your own recycled or refashioned design(s) to be views by the public, or come see what others have created. Learn about resale shopping and how to reuse some of your old clothes. Donation of $5 for audience members and $15 registration for designers. Sunday April 15 from 1 – 3 pm will be First Aid for Children. This program teaches children (ages 7-13) how to stay calm and how to act in an emergency situation. Participants will learn how to get help and what to do until help arrives. Basic first aid and rescue breathing skills and what to do in case of a fire will be introduced. Program fee is $6.50. Howard Christensen Nature Center, 16190 Red Pine Dr. Kent City. If interested simply email cperski@lilysfrogpad.com. #14

Red Hat Society

Apr. 16: Ladies, age 50 and older, are invited to join our Red Hast of Red Flannel Town group. We meet once a month and have lots of fun! Call Minnie Morey at 616-481-6194 to learn about the group and to join in on the fun. #14,15p

Cedar Springs Community Night

Apr. 19: Make plans now to attend the 26th annual Cedar Springs Community Night Thursday April 19th at the Cedar Springs High School from 6 to 8:30 pm. The event is designed to showcase the school, businesses and organizations in and around the area. Admission is free for the general public. For more information on how your organization can get involved email, cedar.springs.can@gamail.com, see facebook@Cedar Springs CAN, or call 616-696-7320. Printed form in The Post on March 15th.  #12,13,14p

Senior Lunch Starts Soon

Apr. 26: The hitch as been worked out of our get-a-long. Ma n’ Pa are pleased to host another season of Senior Lunch at the Pine Grove Senior Café starting April 26th. Ma’s studying the cookbooks and Pa’s tunin up that fine tenor voice It’s fixin to be  fine fettle of a season. #14

Do you want to win some money? Do you want to support local students get scholarship help for college? Do you want to enjoy family fun and music while staying  local? If the answer was yes to any of these questions, than you need to find a Cedar Springs Rotarian because the Cedar Springs Rotary club is hosting a cow plop fundraiser on May 5!

What is that? The land next to White Creek Lumber will be sectioned off into 2×2 squares, and a calf will be released and monitored. There are tickets assigned to each square at 5 p.m. and, if the cow plops in the  square where your ticket is placed, you may be a winner.

There are three prizes. The first plop square wins $1000, the second $350 and the third $150. The great thing is that you do not even need to be present to win, but we hope you will come and join in the fun anyway. The ticket will also grant you admission into a community concert featuring local musicians in a band called “Madhouse.” They are a local band that will play lots of fun cover songs that will make you want to dance. There will also be ballon animals, face painting, bounce houses, exhibits from Howard Christensen Nature Center and more.

The event begins at 2 p.m., with the winner announced after the 5 p.m. drawing. Tickets are only $5 each and can be purchased at Independent Bank, ChoiceOne Bank, Weingartz, White Creek Lumber, Cedar Springs Area Parks and Recreation, Gebhardt Insurance, or from any Cedar Springs Rotarian. For more information, you can join the group on Facebook at Cedar Springs Rotary Club.

All this warm weather we’ve been having lately is making our gardening thumbs twitch here at the The Wittenbach/Wege Agriscience and Environmental Education Center in Lowell. As we plan our 2012 garden, we’ve noticed we have lots of unused seed that we don’t need. Are you in the same boat? Do you have lots of unused seed from summers past that you no longer have a need for? Wouldn’t it be great to get rid of your seed stash and acquire new seeds?

We will be hosting a seed swap on Sunday, April 1, from 2-3 p.m. here at the WWC. Bring out any seeds you have to swap. Seeds can be up to five years old but please don’t bring anything you know isn’t viable. Make sure all packets are labeled with the type and variety name (original packets are appreciated but not necessary). Even if you don’t have seeds to swap, come on out. The WWC will have heirloom and traditional varieties available for a small donation. For more information, please call 616-987-2565 or email Meggan Johnson at mjohnson@lowellschools.com.

An “Antiques Roadshow” style antique appraisal will be  held Saturday, April 14, at the educational building of the Sand Lake United Methodist Church, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. This is the first major event of the church’s celebration of its 140th anniversary. It will feature appraiser Joan Bunn, one of the region’s few Certified Appraisers, who says she loves her work and is owner of Joan & associates of Rockford. There will be a donation of $10 for each of the verbal appraisals. If you would like to simply come and see what others have brought and listen to Joan’s comments and stories about what she sees, come and sit back and enjoy the show. There will also be a bake sale.

Learn how you can immerse yourself in the rich culture of China and discover this country of more than one billion people during Montcalm Community College’s eight-day study abroad trip from June 20-28, 2013. In partnership with EF Educational Tours, MCC offers this trip to its students as well as community members not enrolled at MCC. An informational meeting is April 10 at noon in room D308 in MCC’s Beatrice E. Doser Building in Sidney. The trip is led by MCC Performing Arts Coordinator Val Vander Mark and MCC Psychology Instructor Jessica Snyder. Contact Vander Mark at valv@montcalm.edu or 989-328-1218, or Snyder at jessicas@montcalm.edu or 989-328-1229 or visit www.montcalm.edu/studyabroad.aspx for more information.