A blast of Arctic cold air is sweeping across the country just as family and friends take to the roads and skies to gather for Thanksgiving.

The cold plunge has already arrived in the Midwest and Plains along with a winter storm that has delivered more than a half-foot of snow and strong winds across parts of the Dakotas, Minnesota and northern Wisconsin since Tuesday.

Minneapolis-St. Paul saw its first snow of the season overnight along with wind gusts over 40 mph. Conditions should improve there throughout the day.

The winter storm brought poor travel conditions to Sterling, North Dakota, Tuesday.

The storm will also kick lake-effect snow into high gear across the Great Lakes Wednesday through Friday as it pushes cold air over the warmer lake water. Narrow snow bands could make localized travel tricky where they set up.

Blizzard warnings cover northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where snow totals could be as high as 20 to 30 inches. Farther east, lake-effect snow warnings are posted for up to 20 inches of snow and wind gusts to 50 mph from northeast Ohio to northwest Pennsylvania and southwest New York.

While this cold blast following behind the storm is not the most dramatic of the season, it will be a big change from the short sleeve or sweater weather millions across the US have enjoyed heading into the holiday week.

Temperatures will run up to 20 degrees below average for much of the central and eastern US by Thursday or Friday. Highs in the 20s and 30s are expected across the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes on Thanksgiving, and many Southern cities will wake up to a freeze by Friday morning.

Blustery winds will accompany the temperature change, making it feel even colder. Single-digit wind chill temperatures are expected in portions of the northern Plains, and parade-goers will need to bundle up in New York City Thanksgiving morning despite sunny skies.

In Chicago, gusts up to 35 mph will make highs in the 30s feel more like the 20s. Leftovers in your refrigerator might be warmer than some of your holiday guests on their way home.

Temperatures in the South won’t be quite as brutal but will still grab attention. Highs in the 40s or 50s will stretch from northern Texas through the Tennessee Valley and Carolinas. This will feel like quite a shock compared to last week when many of these areas saw highs pushing into the 70s and 80s.

This cold plunge is just an appetizer for some parts of the country. A strong push of Arctic air is expected to arrive in the central US Thanksgiving weekend into early next week. That will bring another round of below-average temperatures to the Rockies, Plains and parts of the Midwest to end November and start December. Low temperatures might plunge below zero in parts of Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota and northern Wisconsin by Sunday or Monday Morning.

Parade balloons to battle breezes in NYC

New York City will see temperatures drop into the 40s Wednesday night with gusty northwest winds sticking around through Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

Decorations for Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade were installed in Macy's Herald Square in New York City on Monday.

Blustery conditions will make crowds shiver at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, where wind chill temperatures will stay in the 30s. Gusts could reach 20 to 30 mph at times. That’s below the threshold for grounding the big character balloons, but handlers may need to keep a tighter grip.

At least the weather should stay dry with peeks of sun for the crowds lining the parade route.