Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in North Carolina

No. The children's belongings are the childrens, not their mother's. Only the mother's property (real and personal) will be the subject of her estate.

However, be reasonable as to what are the children's things. Clearly their clothes and toys. If the 17 year old had a car that was in the mother's name, that may be a stretch to prove it was your child's.

Did the mother have a will? Was she married? The children will be the beneficiaries of her property depending on whether she had a will and was married. If she had a will, then the property will pass as directed in the will. If there was no will, then any spouse and the children would split generally on a 1/3 (to husband) and 2/3 (to children) basis. If there was no spouse and these are the only children, then they would inherit everything anyway.