For Tampa actress, things are 'Better'

Tampa native JoAnna Garcia says she was a little disappointed when The CW canceled her 2008 dramedy series "Privileged," but it all worked out for the best.

"It was a great role, and I'm proud of the work I did on that show," she says. "But everything that happened after it was canceled has been great."

She moved to New York; dated, fell in love and become engaged to New York Yankee right fielder Nick Swisher; and landed a role in a promising new ABC sitcom "Better With You."

"If the show had not been canceled, I might not have met Nick and he's a really great guy. I feel like I've been really blessed," says Garcia, who turned 31 in August.

Swisher proposed in May and they are planning a December wedding in Tampa (where they have bought a new home).

"Life is good and I love being back on a half-hour comedy," she said in a recent telephone interview.

Garcia spent six years on the sitcom "Reba," playing Reba McEntire's daughter Cheyenne, a character that went from an airheaded cheerleader to a struggling teenage mom.

Now she's going back to wearing fake pregnancy padding because her new character on "Better With You" is having a baby.

Debuting tonight on ABC, "Better With You" follows three related couples at different stages in their romances. Garcia's character, Mia, has fallen in love with Casey (Jake Lacy), a guy she has known only a few weeks.

She's already pregnant and planning a wedding when she introduces him to her older sister Maddie (Jennifer Finnigan) who has been dating Ben (Josh Cooke) for years and to her parents, Vicky (Debra Jo Rupp) and Joel (Kurt Fuller), who have been married 35 years.

Jokes revolve around sibling rivalry, jaded parental observations, and the couples' different approaches to romance.

Garcia says she likes that her character is lively, happy and impulsive. "She is very bright and lives her life by her heart," Garcia says. "She meets a guy and it's love at first sight."

She says that the biggest thing she has in common with Mia is that "we both are planning weddings."

She says the first episode turned out well because there was almost "instant chemistry" with the cast. "We just finished our fifth episode and everything has continued to come together," she says.

The Tampa Catholic graduate started her acting career while she was in elementary school. She is the daughter of well-known Tampa gynecologist Jay Garcia and former school teacher Lorraine Garcia.