Maruca Grant came to show her support for the group.

Grant said she was unsure whether she should speak Spanish, while she was pregnant, to her daughter, Michelle.

"I had the beautiful opportunity to talk to one of the peer educators who introduced me to the program and anyway," Grant said. "I started having the visits and they gave me the right information about how lucky bilingual kids are."

The theme at the Capitol was building blocks for the future.

"In this particular state, we've had the wisdom that an investment in very young children is a social capital investment with great economic repercussions and health repercussions and just right down the line," Parents as Teachers CEO, Sue Stepleton said.

Governor Blunt applauded the group by including a $2 million increase for their 2008 budget.

At the Capitol, legislators said education is an important issue to both sides.

"We believe Parents as Teachers is a valuable program that provides much needed education," Democratic Representative Jeff Harris said.

While Michelle's parents continue building her education, Parents as Teachers hopes to improve many more children's lives across Missouri.

More than 25 years ago, Missouri was the first state to create a parent education system.

Now every state has a similar program.

The Parents as Teachers national center is based in St. Louis.