That blueberry muffin saved me the first year. 

 

It was 2010 and I was in the midst of my first year as an empty-nester. Having been a mother since I was twenty, I felt untethered and without purpose. To top it off, I’d just left my beautiful four-bedroom home in the amazing school district where I’d been teaching in Oklahoma when my husband took a job in Jackson, Mississippi. 

 

I did not want to leave Oklahoma but I also didn’t want to roam around the empty house that had been once filled with teens and the college football players my husband coached. So I decided to embrace the move with a complete lifestyle change. 

 

We opted to move to downtown Jackson, which was in the midst of multi-million dollar revitalization project. We moved into the King Edward building, once a historic pre-Civil War site that had most recently been renovated by former Saints running back Deuce McAllister and partners into a Hilton Garden Inn with luxury apartments on the 9th-12th floors. 

 

I called it my “Friends” era. 

 

We bought all new furniture and decorated with an urban modern feel. Like Monica, I kept things spotless, an impossibility when I’d had children at home. My apartment rivaled the model apartment we’d been shown when touring the building. 

 

And there was a “central perk” as well: the onsite coffee shop!

 

Each morning I’d take the elevator ride down to the lobby and cross the marble floor into the Seattle’s Best Coffee shop. They had a blueberry muffin with crystallized sugar in its crumb topping and lemon zest throughout. I’d imagine I was in New York City, enjoying my delectable treat at that high-top table before heading off to work with all the other big-city gals. 

 

I always have been a dreamer. 

 

We eventually moved back to suburban life where I began cooking my own breakfast once again. I tried over two dozen homemade blueberry muffin recipes and a handful of box mixes in an effort to regain that metropolitan feeling. 

 

The closest I’ve ever come to replicating it via my taste buds is a box of Duncan Hines Simple Mornings Premium Blueberry Streusel Muffin Mix, prepared as directed, with 3 tbsp. of grated lemon zest added to the batter! 

 

Celebrate National Blueberry Muffin Day Thursday, July 11th by whipping up a batch of the antioxidant-rich treats in your kitchen or visit your local coffee shop where many celebrate the day with free muffins or special deals.