Differently from previous studies analysing the relationship between the overall life satisfaction and childbearing, we consider here specific domains of satisfaction. We identify the domains that drive the usual anticipation and adaptation effects surrounding the timing of childbearing. We use the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) and exploit one of its unique features, namely that individuals and couples are asked about their satisfaction for a range of domains. Using fixed effect estimation techniques, we demonstrate differences across domains by gender and between the onset of parenthood and the progression the second birth. Two domains stand out: satisfaction with the partnership and satisfaction with leisure time. We discuss the theoretical implications of this finding, as these domains appear to drive the trajectory observed when using overall life satisfaction. Finally we compare the latent satisfaction extracted from principal component analysis applied to the domains and the declared overall life satisfaction. The results show that the latent life satisfaction is considerably more responsive to childbearing events – especially for women.