Talking about how long you've been doing something

Llevar + gerundio

yeh-VAR — To have been doing something for X time

"Llevo tres años estudiando español."
I've been studying Spanish for three years.

English speakers instinctively reach for a present perfect ("I have studied"), but Spanish uses present tense "llevar" + gerund instead — a structure worth drilling on its own.

"How I'd describe my whole career at this point — llevo siete años enseñando, and I still love every bit of it."— Graciela