Abby Lee Miller: I Made These 'Dance' Girls Cool ... Unlike Their Real Mothers

Thank God for Abby Lee Miller ... said Abby Lee Miller when discussing the fame and success of some of her "Dance Moms" students.

No doubt Abby's got some bragging rights ... we were at her Santa Monica studio when some of her girls, including Maddie Ziegler, were going through a hip-hop routine.

Maddie just won the Seriously Popular trophy at the People's Choice Awards, so you'll excuse Abby for crowing about how she raised her girls. As she put it, "Lord knows, if it would've been up to their mothers."

Okay, maybe you won't excuse her.