u/Common-Coyote-8821

Every time I hear or read a Spanish phrase- which is OFTEN in my region (Southeast TX), I find myself subconsciously translating each word in my head and then comparing the sentence structure to English.

I am an active learner and I consider myself to be fairly advanced but I always end up doing this habit, like every day basically.

Can anyone give me advice on how to start to absorb the phrases without trying to find their English counterparts?

IE: I’ll hear my mother in law say, “¿Que haces en tu cuarto?” to my SIL,

In my head I’ll hear: “What doing-you in your room?”

And then it’ll change to: “What are you doing in your room?”

I understood it correctly the first time- I swear! But I still get so hung up on the exact phrasing and sentence structure. It feels almost like a compulsive behavior.

Hello friends!

My boyfriend’s boss invited us to her 10 y/o daughter’s birthday pool party tonight.

Can anyone suggest some trendy gifts for a 10 y/o girl? I know absolutely nothing about her other than her age. So something pretty easy and foolproof would be great.

Thank you!