BISMARCK, N.D. (KXNET) — With both Thanksgiving and Black Friday this week, many of us laid down our cameras and papers to spend time with our friends and family.. but just because many people pause for a break around now doesn’t mean the news does. There’s always something happening both here in North Dakota and around the USA — and here are some of the biggest stories from our website that grabbed people’s attention amidst the talk of turkey, football, and shopping.

#1: Virginia man pleads guilty after illegally taking his kids over 1,700 miles to North Dakota

36-year-old Timothy Truitt pleaded guilty to both charges of Child Neglect-Parental Care and False Information after taking his two children — a one-year-old daughter and two-year-old son — from a Wal-Mart in Hampton, Virginia on the week of October 17. He was found and arrested later in the week in Burleigh County here in North Dakota — over 1,700 miles from the children’s home.

#2: North Dakota Highway Patrol warns of scams going around impersonating troopers

A statement from the NDHP warns residents of imposter scams, in which someone claiming to be from the North Dakota Highway Patrol is asking for money. In this article, we learn what the NHPD says about spotting and preventing these scams from striking.

#3: Former tribal government official sentenced to six years for bribery scheme

Frank Charles Grady from Billings, Montana — an elected representative of the Three Affiliated Tribes — was sentenced to six years in prison on Monday for engaging in, among other things, solicitation, fraud, and bribery. According to court documents, from 2016-2017, Grady accepted bribes and kickbacks worth over $260,000 from contractors providing construction services on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation.

#4: North Dakotans among the fastest talkers in the nation, study says

Ever thought that you talk too fast? You’re not alone — and in fact, the statement might be true. A study performed by language learning site Preply noted that states in the Midwest- like North Dakota- tend to speak faster than most others across the country.

#5: Search for Memarie White Mountain, missing from Fort Yates, comes to an end

19-year-old Memarie White Mountain went missing on November 10, in the Boot Hill area of Fort Yates. On November 23, members of Badlands Search and Rescue reported that the search had located her deceased body. Investigation into the events that led up to her death is ongoing.

#6: These are the most common birds in North Dakota

Are you a bird watcher? Then you must be familiar with a few of the birds on this list. Stacker compiled a selection of the most common birds spotted in North Dakota. Take a look and see how many you know!

To round out this lovely weekend, here’s a great photo sent in by Sue Johnson from Minot! If you’d like to submit media of your own, you can learn how to do so here. We’ll see you again next week for another edition of In Case You Missed It!