Canberra has a national winner in the Bonds Baby Search

Now in its 18^th year, the search attracted a record-breaking number of entries in 2023.

There were three categories - newborn (zero to six months), baby (six months to two years) and toddler (two to three years), with winners decided by a panel of judges.

And Canberra can now lay claim to having the nation's cutest toddler.

Two-year-old Gungahlin toddler Ishani won over the judges with her "cheeky smile, playful pose, and adorable outfit", a Bonds onesie, of course.

As one of the three national winners, she snagged $10,000 - and bragging rights at daycare.

Stunned mum Dileka Pathiratna said she sent in the photo of Ishani to the competition and then "left it at that".

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When Bonds let her know that Ishani was one of the national winners, Dileka said it was a surreal moment.

"I looked at the email and I was like, 'What? Is she? Really?'. It was a complete surprise," she said.

Ishani, who was making Play-Doh pasta when the news came through, was happily oblivious to it all.

"We had some music playing and I just said, 'Something big has happened' and she was happy just for the dance party to keep going," Dileka said, with a laugh.

The two-year-old, who gets her curls from her grandmother, is just a happy kid.

"She is full of life," Dileka said. "She loves cooking, she loves dancing, all things Bluey and The Wiggles. A typical toddler."

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