Melissa Gilbert’s adoptive mother recently celebrated her birthday. The “Christmas in My Hometown” actress took to social media to honor her mother’s special day.
Melissa paid her mother, Barbara Gilbert, a heart-warming tribute in her recent Instagram post. The 58-year-old actress celebrated her mother’s birthday in style.
She shared a stunning throwback photo of Barbara looking youthful which she captioned, “This gorgeous person is celebrating another trip around the sun today. Happy happy birthday to my sweet, hilarious, talented, compassionate, brilliant mother! Your children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren love you so much, and we hope you have the best day ever!”
Barbara and Paul Gilbert adopted Melissa Gilbert at birth. In her memoir, “Prairie Tale,” the actress gets candid about how she always knew she was adopted. She was told her biological mother was a prima ballerina and her father was a Rhodes Scholar. Since her mother wasn’t ready to give up her career, they decided to give her up for adoption.
In her book, Melissa revealed that when she came of age, she inquired more about her roots and discovered her mother was a dancer but not a prima ballerina, and her dad was a stock car racer and sign painter.
Both her parents were married to different people, and they each had three children. So when they discovered they were pregnant with her, they moved in together with their six children. Life was difficult, and they couldn’t afford another child with their regular jobs, so they opted to give her up for adoption.
Melissa Gilbert is a mom of two. The actress and her first husband welcomed their son Dakota Brinkman in 1989, a year after tying the knot. The pair divorced in 1994, and Melissa found love again with Bruce Boxleitner. The two tied the knot in 1995, and their son Michael Boxleitner was born later that year.
Melissa’s eldest child Dakota followed in her footsteps. He began acting at a young age and made his acting debut in the 1997 thriller film, “Laws of Deception.” His other projects include the 2007 romance/drama film “Safe Harbour” and the 2016 short drama film “Shay.”
It’s unclear what Melissa Gilbert’s second son, Michael does for a living; based on his Instagram page, he loves art and enjoys seeing shows on Broadway. The actress is also a stepmom to five other children. Sam and Lee from her ex-husband Bruce and Samuel, Daisy, and Wilson from her current husband, Timothy Busfield.
