MEREDITH VIEIRA, co-host:
We are back at 7:47. Nearly a month after the death of
Elizabeth Edwards
, new details are emerging about the will that she left behind. And one person who is not so much as mentioned it -- mentioned in it, I'm sorry -- is her estranged husband, former Senator
John Edwards
.
NBC
's
Norah O'Donnell
has more on that.
Norah
, good morning to you.
NORAH O'DONNELL reporting:
Good morning,
Meredith
.
That's right
.
Elizabeth Edwards
has left everything to her children and did not make a single mention of her estranged husband
John Edwards
in the will she signed just days before her death.
Elizabeth Edwards
died just last month after battling
breast cancer
for six years.
MATT LAUER, co-host:
Elizabeth Edwards
dies of
breast cancer
at the age of 61.
In her
last will and testament
dated
December 1st
, six days before she died,
Elizabeth
made her three children the beneficiaries of her estate. "All of my furniture, furnishings, household goods, jewelry, china, silverware and personal effects and any automobiles owned by me at the time of my death I give and bequeath to my children."
Elizabeth
also stipulated that if she was the only surviving parent of her young children,
Emma Claire
and
Jack
, at the time of her death she wanted 28-year-old
Cate
to be their guardian. For now their father,
John Edwards
, is their legal guardian. In
Elizabeth
's five-page will there is no mention of
John
. The two separated last January after 33 years of marriage.
O'DONNELL:
One thing remains true and will never change, which is that we're still a family.
Ms. CATE EDWARDS:
Cate
, a
Washington
lawyer, was named executor of the will. She was by her mother's side for her final moments...
O'DONNELL:
Even in her last days she was comforting us, her family.
Ms. EDWARDS:
...and delivered a beautiful eulogy that proves she shares her mother grace and eloquence.
O'DONNELL:
As some of you may know,
Emma
,
Jack
and I ended every conversation with our mom by saying, "I love you more." And she always responded, "No, I love you more." And as you can imagine, none of us ever won that battle. But today I have the honor of being the last to say, Mom, I really, really love you more.
Ms. EDWARDS:
Now, sources close to the family tell me that
John Edwards
has moved back into the
Chapel Hill
home to be with the kids.
Cate
is also there. In fact, the whole family has stayed together since
Elizabeth
died. As one friend said to me, it's very important to maintain as much stability as possible for the kids, so that's everyone's focus and goal.
Meredith
:
O'DONNELL:
“ ”