Melissa Gilbert and Timothy Busfield got to talking in a bar one night some time after both of their second divorces. Almost immediately, they fell in love. Today, they live a quiet life together in a small cabin in the Catskill mountains. But before they could settle into their quiet life, they had a ton of renovation work to do (the cottage was incredibly rundown when they purchased it). Along the way, Gilbert proved to be quite handy with tools and DIY tasks, earning her a new reputation.
Melissa Gilbert and Timothy Busfield bought a rundown cabin in the Catskills
Gilbert and Busfield started looking for places in the Catskills when they were living in New York City. They wanted a quiet place to retreat to where they could rest and recharge. Regularly browsing Zillow, they finally stumbled upon the place they now call home. Though, you could hardly call it a home in the state they found it in. From the outside, it looked dilapidated, and the inside was filled with moldy furniture and musty old belongings. Still, they decided to put in an offer and fix the place up.
The big cleanup and Gilbert’s new nickname
Getting rid of all the old furniture and cleaning the home up was a mountainous task. But Gilbert enjoyed throwing herself into the project.
“I mopped and scrubbed, listened to music, and enjoyed the various thoughts that shuffled through my head,” she wrote in her 2022 book Back to the Prairie.
The couple worked well together. Busfield was particularly impressed with his wife’s attitude and knowledge.
“We had a good time spending our days eradicating filth and grime,” she wrote. “Tim already knew that I was willing to roll up my sleeves and dive into even the grossest projects, and I knew how handy he was, even though he disagreed and insisted that I was the man in the family.”
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Gilbert’s always been handy, which she credits her father for.
“I did get a certain natural know-how with tools from my dad, whom I watched build furniture and fix things when I was a little girl,” she wrote. “I’m also fearless. No one can ever accuse me of being a prissy princess. I’ll try almost anything.”
The cabin was a symbol of the couple’s love
The cabin in the Catskills was more than just a place to live for Gilbert and Busfield. It was a clean slate—that they literally needed to heavily clean—to begin their new life together.
“This house was in need of TLC but its bones were solid and we saw the potential it offered,” wrote Gilbert. “It reminded me of the way we felt about each other when we met for brunch on our first date. Though both of us had been through some stuff, we were drawn to each other by the prospect that something interesting was going to happen if we let it.
“Sometimes with relationships, remodels, and rehabs, you have to roll the dice in order to discover what the kids call your best life. Then, as was happening to me, you find out that the excitement of the process, of riding the river of possibilities, is your best life.”
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