London - Treating the little darlings to the latest toys and gadgets is for many parents one sure way to put a price on love.
One four-year-old has certainly earned a treat or two – after playing with her toys online made her mummy a millionaire.
Little Gabriella has become the UK's top YouTube star after her videos have been viewed more than 3.6 billion times around the world.
Her YouTube channel Toys and Little Gaby, in which she stars alongside five-year-old brother Alex, earns mother Sabine Vilumsone, 28, more than £1-million (about R18.5-million) a year.
Vilumsone set up the page three years ago after her children became fans of the video-sharing website, and has since raked in nearly 11 million subscribers.
The popular videos, filmed at home in Rossendale, Lancashire, show the siblings enjoying bath-time singalongs, dressing up and "toy unboxing" – a YouTube phenomenon which involves child stars revealing and reviewing their new toys.
The channel, which owes it success to YouTube’s surging number of child users, has even been ranked Britain’s number one.
It beat 23 million other channels including Ed Sheeran, BBC News and Top Gear, according to digital analytics firm Social Blade, which bases its rankings on viewing figures and social influence.
Vilumsone, who is originally from Latvia, works full-time managing the channel and corresponding Facebook and Instagram accounts.
The family makes money from adverts which appear alongside the videos. Vilumsone confirmed earnings from the channel’s 241 videos were in the region of £1-million a year, but would not disclose their total earnings to date. The family rent their home, worth around £260 000, but are now considering buying it, neighbours said.
Vilumsone, who has appeared in the videos herself, told the Sunday Times: "When [the children] were smaller they liked watching Youtube videos, and we just thought we should try it."