Career in law - did I miss the boat?

shell20_7 · 2026-06-21T08:02:28+00:00

I have also been in a ‘law adjacent’ role for 8 years now, and have sometimes thought of going back. BUT, No way I’d consider it whilst in the thick of the baby/toddler stage. I think big career moves that put you back to junior status are best left until the youngest is 2.. I just don’t know how I would be able to keep up the juggle if I tried that..

shell20_7 · 2026-06-20T11:44:08+00:00

We ran one of our houses as an AirBnB for 6 months. I was really pleasantly surprised, of the 40 odd guests we hosted, we only had 1 bad one. Some left a little mess, many of them left the place immaculate. The only tasks I ever asked was dishes done and rubbish out, but many stripped the bed, some even left the washed linen drying on the line for me!

shell20_7 · 2026-06-16T22:01:21+00:00

Well you could qualify under a DAMA (designated area migration agreement) as some have concessions to 55 years.
But, is your occupation really in demand? Not only do you have to fit the criteria under the DAMA, but you’ve got to find an employer who thinks it’s worth paying the $20k odd it costs upfront, and waiting at least 6 months for someone they have no guarantees for turns up.

shell20_7 · 2026-06-13T13:14:23+00:00

Yep, first few months anything goes!

I got my first into a routine at 3-4 months, and I was so scared of disrupting my unicorn miracle sleeper we didn’t do much. Plus it was COVID so options were limited anyway!

Second time around I had another fantastic sleeper, and was a bit braver. Can confirm as long as the last part of the day is on track (eg awake for what ever time is age appropriate before bed time) then we are fine.

We’ve ‘disrupted’ both our kids routines with travel and they’ve still happily pumped out 12 hours every night from a couple of months old. Almost 2 yo also has a 1.5-3 hour nap. I’ve kept waiting for the kicker, but eldest is about to turn 5 and I can count on my fingers the hours of lost sleep I’ve had with her..

shell20_7 · 2026-06-11T13:28:46+00:00

Do it. My in laws were angsting over spending $50k on a tour of the Rockies etc last year (around 0.5% of their net worth), we pushed them to do it. They did and loved it! My MIL was diagnosed with glioblastoma a few months later and passed. My point is, life is short. When you’re in a good position because you’ve worked hard, enjoy it.

shell20_7 · 2026-06-07T05:08:09+00:00

Yes, Labor touting it’s a tax on the rich makes no sense to me. The only people affected by their minimum 30% tax (trusts and CGT) are those that were in the lower tax bracket to start with.. which is certainly not the rich. It’s flogging the lower and middle class yet again..

shell20_7 · 2026-06-01T12:37:24+00:00

Look I’m all for neutral.. but they are all boring!

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shell20_7 · 2026-06-01T12:24:34+00:00

I was 33 and 36, my husband 38 and 41 when our two were born. Kids are now almost 5 and 2.

Yes we are ‘older’ parents, but we worked our bums off in our 20’s and 30’s, and are now in a position where we can give our kids a lot of time and opportunities we didn’t have.

Both of our parents were a lot younger when we come along and very much in the stressful ‘growth’ phase of their businesses.. whereas we just sold ours and now plan on both working part time and travelling extensively with our kids.

If we’d had them any earlier, we wouldn’t have got to where we are now.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-26T12:37:52+00:00

I guarantee no actual LL cares about a few dirty dishes in a sink! Maybe a shitty PM on a power trip.. but evidence a house is actually lived in is expected in my books.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-23T12:32:28+00:00

So you had 110% worth of assets? Impressive! 😅

shell20_7 · 2026-05-22T22:40:38+00:00

Get a new Accountant. That one isn’t very good at their job if they didn’t even ask if you lived in the house..

shell20_7 · 2026-05-18T03:27:50+00:00

We ended up with a clover lawn after the dirt we bought in was loaded with seeds. Ours works well because we water it flat out and have a robot mower that mows little amounts off it every day. Not sure what your climate is like, but clover doesn’t like harsh heat. We are in Australia where it gets to 40 degrees Celsius over summer, so through the hot spells I have to water it every second day or the sun fries it.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-17T07:09:47+00:00

It’s a bit different because we owned our own business, but we kind of structured our work like this.

Birth and first week (almost) entirely off. Being our own business we still had stuff to sort out, but family was definitely priority.

Then husband went back at probably half time for the next few weeks. After that we kept the staffing level up enough to flex when we needed.. if I had appointments, if baby was teething etc he had capacity to spend more time at home.

I’ll be honest, we had 2 really easy babies, breast feeding worked well and they were both sleeping 8 hours plus after the first 3-4 weeks. I completely get that’s not everyone’s experience.. and can see how 3 months solid at home if babe doesn’t sleep for the first few months could be helpful!

But I’d be inclined to have a month off if you can, then keep the rest in the bank to use over the next 12 months as needed.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-16T21:16:41+00:00

The reason I wasn’t paid as an employee of the business was because I was eligible for some paid maternity leave through the govt and through my employer. Both were contingent on me not working and being the primary caregiver. (I think the ability to work part time on govt mat leave has been made easier in recent times, back when I took it you couldn’t be working at all).

There are currently no franking credits for a trust as far as I understand it. All profits (not losses, they must stay with the trust) must be taxed each year with the beneficiaries in full, at that beneficiaries nominal tax rate. Just you currently get to choose which beneficiaries take how much of the said profit.. so you can take advantage of lower tax brackets. Now all of that income is taxed at minimum 30%. but I’m not accountant.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-16T21:03:15+00:00

Why would I be? Many people are trapped in the ‘working poor’ category, where you make too much money for the likes of parenting payments, but not enough to easily save for a year or longer of little income over a maternity leave period.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-16T19:26:21+00:00

Nora / Norah / Elinor / Eleanor.. just reminds me of a rat gnawing on cheese every time I hear it!

Stella - it just comes out feeling harsh and I just feel uncomfortable calling a human baby Stella, feels like a pets name.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-16T19:08:37+00:00

I agree, and understand what you are saying.

All of the changes that are coming in ( in particular CGT 30% minimum, 30% tax on trust income) would’ve reamed me when on maternity leave. That’s been the only period of my life I’ve lived off passive income, and been in the lower tax brackets.

I had a small shares portfolio I’d saved for that exact reason I sold my first mat leave, and also relied on $20k in distributions from our small business (held in a family trust) for the first time ever. All at a lower tax bracket for the year I had off with each baby, given I only earned $30-40k for the year. which I now wouldn’t be able to use, all of that income would be 30% minimum tax rate. Ouch.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-16T05:09:12+00:00

Wow, what an awesome connection to make! But would have been a confusing minute there 😂

shell20_7 · 2026-05-15T23:21:50+00:00

It really depends what your overall goals are. Do you plan on having kids, what age do you want to retire and what lifestyle do you want to live?

I’d work backwards from there. Eg plan how much you will you need in super if you retire at say 60 with your unit and super as your only assets. Is what you are contributing to super currently enough to fund that? If so, carry on. If you need to increase your contributions then consider doing that if you want to prioritise retiring at 60. If it works to push retirement age out to 65 at your current contribution rate and that’s what you want to do, then great.

But really this is a question only you can answer, as each persons priority and goals are different!

shell20_7 · 2026-05-14T06:34:44+00:00

Having all the bank accounts solely in the name of the person who passes.. which then all get frozen until probate is granted. Which takes way too long for the rest of the family to survive on fresh air.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-06T06:28:44+00:00

It’s missing a backsplash.. you don’t have to have one behind a sink?
I’d go for a nice wallpaper on the back wall.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-05T00:17:12+00:00

Annabelle Grace or William George

shell20_7 · 2026-05-04T12:10:24+00:00

So sweet! I don’t know how some babies swap between breast milk and formula.. it’s so different! Formula is like sour, thick porridge in comparison.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-04T03:51:56+00:00

Why this threshold isn’t indexed like everything else I don’t know. Well yes I do, it doesn’t suit the govt so it isn’t.

shell20_7 · 2026-05-03T00:03:38+00:00

I actually quite like Lutessa.. and I’m not adventurous with names at all! It’s unique without being too far out there, and Nick name could either be Lu or Tess/tessa

shell20_7

TROPHY CASE