u/Low_Aioli2420

TRIGGER WARNING: Discussion of child sexual abuse prevention.

Context:
Dad (34M) - native: English; target: Spanish (A2)

Mom (37F) - native/dominant: English; target: Spanish (C2 - close to native proficiency but not formally educated).

Child (2M) - community: English (95%; very little exposure from community/family/friends); target: Spanish (mom, tv/songs/books, visiting maternal family or FaceTime with them, some from Dad when practicing)

System: OPOL. I speak almost 100% Spanish with my son with the exception of when I’m speaking to him AND others who don’t speak Spanish. So far, we have been very successful as my son mostly speaks Spanish but is picking up a good amount of language across both languages.

Dilemma and Query for Forum:

Despite my best efforts, my algorithms are still dominantly in English given that is my dominant and preferred language, as well as location. Recently, a content creator has come across my socials that uses songs, games, and language to teach toddlers about body awareness, consent, and safety for the purposes of preventing child sexual abuse. This influencer/content creator emphasizes the importance of teaching children the appropriate words/language regarding their private areas as well as teaching them the right words to use if they are in an uncomfortable or inappropriate situation, not only for saying “No” but also for reporting to the appropriate adults/guardians/parents.

I am already looking for resources for this in Spanish to arm myself with the right language (this was not something that I remember being taught when I was a child and fortunately it was never needed but I rather take precautions and follow expert advice). I already purchased a bilingual version of “my body belongs to me” but realistically, I know that as a SAHM and the person that does 95% of the book reading to my son, the likelihood he receives this kind of “education” from Dad in English is minimal.

This concerns me because given our community language is English, if he were to be put in an inappropriate situation or need to reach out and inform an adult that’s not me, all these interactions are likely to occur in English and my discussions with him on the topic in Spanish will not be helpful to him navigating that in an English-speaking environment.

Ideally, I wish this could be something I could just hand over to my husband and emphasize the importance to him in reinforcing the lessons and language regarding body consent and safety but given his limited time with our son compared to me (and his poor memory and comfort on these things), I doubt he would get to the necessary level of reinforcement and repetition needed to really “train” our son on this topic and would likely just lead me to need to be micromanaging this from the background (un ideal for anyone who knows what it’s like to be married).

I’ve already had to mourn the loss of being able to have a relationship with my son in English and how little I will be able to influence his speech in English (trust me this hurts given we are in a heavy regional accent area and it is NOT the accent I speak English in; here’s to hoping he doesn’t end up with a strong regional accent like his grandparents; his dad has a moderate/weak one) but this is the first time where I feel not speaking to my son in English ever may end up hurting him.

Any suggestions on how to proceed? I don’t think it would be that confusing if I switched up to English for this purpose but I am not sure and am nervous I will be opening Pandora’s box to allowing a relationship in English with my son that would effectively kill my ability to reinforce the Spanish long term.

I want to read Crescent City and was told I should read ACOTAR first but I am having a hard time finishing the series.

I read ACOTAR and I enjoyed it overall. I liked the world building of Prythian and the different courts and this female red-headed Big Bad villain under the mountain with a hot evil High Lord henchman making her do crazy trials that she shouldn’t survive but does thanks to a cunning wit, true grit, and a speckling of good luck and unusual allies.

I liked Tamlin and Lucien too, and Feyre was alright but I was def getting Stockholm Syndrome vibes and “as it was foretold in prophecy” about their “love story”. Feyre’s big bold (suicidal?) gesture to go save Tamlin was interesting and (kind of?) romantic but his lack of reciprocity in that event was disheartening (although it was immensely clear at that point they were building Rhys up for something romantic).

I found ACOMAF disappointing. They killed off their big villain and the King of Hybern didn’t have the same gravitas (I also am still confused why a tiny island is so powerful? The Cauldron? Is that it?) I thought the way Feyre left things with Tamlin was gross even if he was out of line. Rhys got boring. I liked him better as this sexy, dark Prince of Nightmares. I expected a “heart of gold” transformation but I was hoping for more of a redemption arc vs a “it’s all a ruse and I’m really a good guy” storyline (especially as it’s so confusing with the “he’s the most powerful high lord ever” but he’s got to play “fake tough” at the CoN). Did he kill the fae and spike him in the Spring Court or not? I’m still confused on this. Are we supposed to feel bad because he was “made to do it”?

By the end of ACOWAR, I was thoroughly unenthused with where the plot has been going. The only characters I like are Amren, Morr, and Lucien. Cassian may grow on me? Idk yet. But apparently Amren, Morr and Lucien become even less of characters moving forward? I know things change and it becomes more about Nesta in the future books. I have no particular opinion of her from where I am at in the series. She seems kind of like a bitch but obviously they are making her general sourness part of the plot and not just a character flaw.

I almost DNF ToG after Assassins blade (read 4th) for similar qualms with the plot, FMC, and shifting and unfleshed out romantic relationships. I stuck with it for Dorian and Manon’s storylines (didn’t know they would cross) and ended up overall really liking ToG for the whole story.

Can someone tell me what I have to look forward to in this series? I don’t mind spoilers. I know Feyre gets pregnant and Nesta and Cassian end up banging (didn’t need spoilers for that one lol) but I don’t know enough to know why I should care about either things Entice me! Is there anything for someone of my opinions and preferences to look forward to?

The only plot elements in the first 3 books that left me curious to know more or see where it goes (but not enough to fully enthuse me) were:

- what’s the deal with Elain? I hope all this mystery around her reclusiveness and her powers comes to something interesting. Also what’s up with the mating bond with Lucien?

- does Lucien find out his parentage and what happens to the Autumn Court? Is Eris going to become a bigger character? I think he can become interesting.

- what did Nesta take from the cauldron? I figure this must be addressed in the rest of the series but like is it good? Is it a major plot driver or like kind of just this detail that gets quickly resolved or then doesn’t really impact the story much.

- do we get more Morr or Amren? I really like them as female lead characters, much more so than the Archerons. I know the Archerons are the POV and protagonists but do we get more of them in the plot/story?

- does Tamlin come back into the main plot or is he just the sour ex-bf that divas out every now and then?

If you got this far, thanks for reading!

There’s only so much more I can listen to Old McDonald and Baby Shark without losing my mind.

Unfortunately, my taste in music isn’t going to be interesting or fun to a child (don’t think he’s going to have much interest in a drum n bass remix to Tame Impala) but I NEED adult music (even if it’s not really my usual and personal taste) so please tell me your kiddos fave songs to jam out to the in the car in hopes of making a somewhat fun and tolerable playlist for an upcoming road trip. Thank you!

EDIT: WOW! What an incredible response! I have enough music here for a few cross country trips I think. Thank you so much for sharing and keep on keeping the music alive! Yall (and your kids) have some wonderful taste! 🤘🎸👩‍🎤🎤🎹🎧

Not sure why I didn’t see this coming. The writing was definitely on the wall. My boomer mother has no idea what’s going on around the world and for being a college educated woman is surprisingly ignorant in general. At first, it was catching her showing my baby AI slop Jesus + children YT videos to “entertain” him. I quickly put a stop to that but I guess since my mom doesn’t live near us and rarely has any opportunities to solo babysit, I didn’t think to have a larger discussion around social media and AI use and safety. I blame myself. I was too lenient. I didn’t stop her from sharing photos of my son I shared with her on her FB, IG, or WhatsApp groups because I know it brings her so much joy to do so. I figured she’s private and I double checked her settings and friends/followers and it seemed ok. I also share few and select pictures of my son on my private accounts so it seemed hypocritical to not let her especially if I can control what images she has and ensure they are ones I am comfortable being shared (no identifying information, nothing inappropriate or objectionable, etc). But I severely underestimated how this boundary could be so quickly crossed….

On her FB, she posted a picture of a toddler in front of some angel statues in a garden. I didn’t even recognize him at first. It was so wrong. It was my son but it wasn’t. Sure, it had his hair and his ears and even his birthmark but his face….was wrong. I don’t know why I found it so incredibly unsettling and disconcerting. Maybe this is something that’s already getting normalized in a world of AI but I can’t help but get this horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach about it. Seeing my child doing something I know he’s never done, wearing clothes he’s never worn, in a place he’s never been just really freaked me out. I know this is why they recommend to not put any pictures of your kids online. I guess I always hoped if the few pics I do share did happen to leak into the WWW that it would be diluted by the innumerable quantity of pictures and data that is shared globally each day. But I never thought it was going to be my family to directly feed the beast.

So…PSA: talk to your Boomer today about AI and internet/social media safety!

I left my Postdoc after one year 4 years ago after a recruiter found me for a spatial biology CRO. I worked as a lead scientist where I developed and validated spatial biology assays for use in clinical trials, validating biomarkers, etc and managed all clinical assay execution (phase 1-4), data analysis, reporting, etc. I was laid off in January 2025 and decided to take some time off to travel, visit family abroad and then also move my family to the Atlantic corridor. I did “light” job hunting during that time where I applied broadly to posted jobs via LinkedIn but didn’t tap my network or anything. I was surprised to get 0 callbacks to any (80+) applications during those 8 months but thought perhaps without the extra effort of tailoring my resume etc, it was the cause of the lack of callbacks.

Once we moved, my husband was settled in his new job, etc, I started looking more seriously in the Atlantic corridor for translational med scientist, biomarkers scientist, or clinical scientist positions but despite company referrals for the few positions that have opened, I am still not getting callbacks for interviews for them. I know the market is over saturated and undoubtedly, my 15 month gap is hurting me as well. Outside of some manuscript reviewing and staying up to date on the industry, I haven’t found a way to stay active.

I really hate this idea but I’m starting to think about going back to an academic postdoc (presuming I could even get one). I don’t want to lose my scientific career and an income (even if much reduced than what I used to make) would be nice (even if I’m in the privileged position to be able to continue without one for awhile longer).

Any thoughts on this route in this market to keep my career on some kind of life support?