EDITOR'S NOTE: This article was last updated on the evening of Nov. 21, 2015.

Winter Storm Bella laid down an impressive swath of first-of-the-season snow for many in the Midwest and Great Lakes.

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Here are six things to keep in mind about this first major Midwest winter storm of the season.

1. Not Your Typical "Season's First" Snow

Any preconceived notions of easing into the snow season should be thrown out with this winter storm.

Instead of a gentle dusting, the first measurable snow of the season is, for some, a 6-inch-plus dumping from South Dakota to Michigan. At least a foot of total snow has been reported in five states.

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In many of these locations, the first one-inch-plus snow of the season usually comes by the first week of December. So, this is not only early, but impressively heavy.

Chicago hasn't seen 6 inches of November snow since 1978, just months before a 1979 blizzard cost Mayor Michael Bilandic his job. Bella proved to be the second largest November snowstorm on record for the city, dumping 11.2 inches.

Similarly, Milwaukee hasn't seen 6 inches of November snow in 20 years.

Snowfall Forecast

(Note: This snowfall forecast does not include snow that has already fallen. Instead, this indicates additional snow yet to fall through the event.)

2. Snow Will Vary Greatly Over Small Distances

As in many snowstorms, snow totals will be highly variable over small distances, including some metro areas.

Small-scale snowbands,on the order of 5-10 miles wide, can produce heavier snowfall rates in excess of 1 inch per hour. Predicting exactly where they'll set up is exceedingly difficult, even a day before the event.

, with light accumulation north of the city and over a foot on the city's south side.

This also took place over southern Wisconsin. Madison's Dane County Regional Airport came in with only 2.7 inches of snow as of Saturday morning. Just 35 miles south of the Badger state capital, a whopping 17 inches of snow was reported near the town of Footville, Wisconsin.

Winds flowing off Lake Michigan, while enhancing snowfall rates by adding moisture to the air, will also warm the lowest levels of the atmosphere nearest the lakeshore, as .

Thus, the northwest suburbs of Chicagoland picked up the heaviest snow, while areas closer to the lake saw considerably less.

For example, the northwest suburb of Hawthorn Woods came in with 12.4 inches of snow Saturday morning, while Midway Airport, southwest of downtown, measured a mere 2.1 inches and roads near the loop appeared wet with little snow accumulation.

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A tractor-trailer spun out into the median of Interstate 29 between Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Sioux City, Iowa during Winter Storm Bella on Nov. 20, 2015.

(Denna Huett Boardsen/Facebook)

3. Road and Air Travel Delays

If you're getting away early for Thanksgiving week, leave extra time. Flight delays are likely out of Chicago-O'Hare particularly Saturday morning. Delays are also possible Saturday in Milwaukee and Detroit. Check your flight status before heading to the airport.

Road conditions will also deteriorate Saturday along the snow swath into southern Wisconsin, northern Illinois, Michigan and northern Indiana.

Given this is the first snow of the season in these areas, you should assume many people will be rusty on their winter driving skills. Slow down, leave extra distance and consider postponing travel, if possible.

There may be some reduced visibilities and minor blowing and drifting snow Saturday and Saturday night, particularly in rural areas.

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Sunday: Bella Is Done

4. Bella Will Move Quickly

One factor cutting down Bella's snow total will be its fast movement.

By around midday Saturday, the snow will be finished west of the Mississippi River, and by mid-afternoon much of Wisconsin and Illinois, with the possible exception of lingering lake-enhanced bands near Chicago.

By late Saturday night into Sunday, the large-scale snow should have pulled into Canada, leaving only lingering lake-effect bands in its wake.

Which leads us to ...

Sunday Morning's Forecast Lows

5. Coldest Air of the Season Follows

Get ready for some mid-winter cold for a little while after Bella.

Highs Saturday may not get much above freezing from the western Great Lakes into the Upper Mississippi Valley and northern Plains. Colder yet, some locations won't get out of the 20s for highs this weekend!

With this fresh snow cover, clearing skies and lighter winds, lows Sunday morning may plummet into the single digits and teens in the Bella snow areas, with 20s plunging into the Tennessee Valley and Deep South Sunday and Monday.

This could lead to hazardous driving conditions on snowpacked, untreated roads Sunday in the Bella-affected areas, particularly in the morning when temperatures dip to levels where road salt is not nearly as effective.

If this sounds a bit depressing already, there's some good news ahead.

Thanksgiving Forecast

6. Bella's Snow Will Be Gone Next Week

The thing with early (and late) season heavy snow is that it may not last.

Sure enough, the jet stream will rearrange itself Thanksgiving week, allowing cold air to lock itself in place over the West, and only slowly oozing its way south into the northern Plains.

That, in turn, will force the Gulf of Mexico to open for business, sending warmer air north into the Upper Midwest, kicking out the post-Bella cold air.

By the middle of the week, highs should recover into the 40s or 50s in most of the areas blanketed by Bella's snow.

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Unfortunately, a soaking rain is then looking probable around Thanksgiving into Black Friday in the Upper Midwest. That would turn this weekend's blanket of snow getting you in the holiday spirit into a March-like mess of puddles and could lead to some local flooding.

Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at weather.com and has been an incurable weather geek since a tornado narrowly missed his childhood home in Wisconsin at age 7. Follow him on and .

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Winter Storm Bella (PHOTOS)

Vehicles move slowly on the road as snow falls Saturday, Nov. 21, 2015, in Wheeling, Ill. The first significant snowstorm of the season blanketed some parts of the Midwest with more than a foot of snow and more was on the way Saturday, creating hazardous travel conditions and flight delays. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)