This Actress Fills Her Holidays With Family Fun
By Movieguide® Contributor
Actress Joanna Garcia Swisher values spending quality time with family during the holidays. The SWEET MAGNOLIA star recently told PEOPLE about her plans for this year and the people she loves to spend the holidays with.
“We try to mostly just be all together for the holidays. This year, we’re going to have a little family trip with my brother and his kids. So, we won’t be home in Florida, but we’ve rented a home and we’re going to do it up to make it feel like home,” she said.
Swisher shares daughters — Sailor Stevie, 8, and Emerson Jay, 11 — with husband Nick Swisher. She explained how games are a big part of their family time.
“We’re a big game family. Our games have evolved, though. We used to play a big family kickball game but as you know grandparents started getting older and stuff, we got into a lull for a little there. We might get back after it, but for now we do a big like Minute to Win It Night on Christmas Eve where we split into teams. I’d say that’s our biggest tradition,” she said.
In addition to her family at home, Swisher values her “family” relationships with past cast-mates of shows she’s been in.
“I think about my time on REBA or SWEET MAGNOLIAS because those shows are very much about family,” she added. “So, this time of year is always nice because I’m very close with the casts of both of those shows. The family that we’ve created is something that has endured in both cases. I’m so grateful for it.”
“This was some of the best years of my life,” she told SheKnows. “My first impression of Reba was I couldn’t believe that I’m standing in the same room as Reba McEntire. Just being around her has taught me so much, that you can be a boss and a really successful woman,” she added. “I’m still learning from her and she’s still the queen. She’s just always bringing it.”
READ MORE: COUNTRY MUSIC ICON INSPIRED THIS SWEET MAGNOLIAS ACTRESS: ‘BEST YEARS’
She also loves being a mom, and her husband is the best dad.
“It’s really sweet. That is something that I could get really emotional about. I was very, very, very close to my dad. He was the ultimate girl dad,” Swisher told PEOPLE earlier this year, mentioning her dad, Jay Garcia, who died in 2019. “So I know how important that role is in a young girl’s life.”
“I have seen you do many things, but watching you as a father might be my favorite,” she posted of Nick on Father’s Day this year. “The time you spend, the love, the adoration…all of it showing Emme and Sailor how deeply love and respected they are by someone that truly loves them unconditionally.”
READ MORE: JOANNA GARCIA SWISHER PRAISES HER HUSBAND’S ROLE AS DAD
