Did you get a new knit hat and mittens for Christmas or Hanukkah? Perhaps a new winter coat? Well, you won’t need them much, if at all, during most of the final week of 2023.

We’ve got some dense fog to start Christmas Day, but once it burns off this morning, skies will remain mostly cloudy for the balance of the day, but it will be on the mild side. The fog returns tonight, but Tuesday may see some sunny breaks develop once the fog burns off. Wednesday is where things start to get interesting. The low pressure system producing all sorts of nasty weather in the Plains and Upper Midwest will head into the Great Lakes, sending some showers in on Wednesday. At the same time, a second low pressure system will develop near the Carolina coast and head north-northeastward. This will bring some steadier rain in by late Wednesday, more likely Wednesday night into Thursday morning, before the system pulls away. An upper-level low pressure will then move into the East Coast, and it may spawn a weak low at the surface on Friday, which could triggering a few rain or snow showers across the region. The upper-level low moves directly overhead on Saturday, resulting in some cooler conditions, plenty of clouds, and possible another snow shower or two. High pressure builds in with dry and cool conditions for New Year’s Eve. Another weak system may move in on New Year’s Day with some snow showers possible.

Christmas Day: Dense fog early, then becoming partly to mostly sunny. High 46-53.

Monday night: Mostly cloudy, fog redevelops. Low 33-40.

Tuesday: More clouds than sunshine. High 46-53.

Tuesday night: Cloudy, chance for a shower or two late at night. Low 36-43.

Wednesday: Cloudy with a few showers, becoming a steady rain at night. High 47-54.

Thursday: Mostly cloudy and breezy, rain ending in the morning. High 47-54.

Friday: Mostly cloudy, breezy, chance for a few rain or snow showers. High 41-48.

Saturday: Partly sunny, breezy, chance for a few flurries. High 35-42.

New Year’s Eve: A mix of sun and clouds. High 34-41.

New Year’s Day: Partly sunny, breezy, chance for a snow shower. High 36-43.

Once we get past today, much of the week will be fairly quiet weatherwise. Today will not be quiet at all though.

A strong cold front moves through early this morning, with rain ending by midday as the front pushes offshore. Gusty winds west behind the front usher much cooler air into the region. After a mild start, temperatures will drop through the morning. They may level off a little towards midday, especially as the rain ends, then we’ll drop again by late afternoon and evening as skies clear out. High pressure builds in for Tuesday with plenty of sunshine and seasonably cool temperatures. Another cold front moves through on Wednesday, but it will be starved for moisture, so it will only generate a few clouds, and possibly a stray snowflake or two. High pressure returns for Thursday through the weekend. We’ll be rather chilly on Thursday as the high builds in, then temperatures slowly moderate. There is one potential fly in the ointment. Many of the models generate a pretty potent storm in the Gulf of Mexico toward the end of the week or the weekend, and try to have it start moving up the coast. However, the big high sitting in place will slow down that storm’s progress by acting as a roadblock. Some models don’t have the rain with the system ever get up here, so wait until Monday or Tuesday, and some have it move in as early as late Sunday. We’re leaning toward the drier scenario for now, but obviously should have a better idea when we publish our Weekend Outlook on Thursday.

Monday: Rain ending by midday, some late-day clearing is possible, windy. High 40-47 early, except warmer across southeastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod, where temperatures drop during the morning, then hold steady in the lower to middle 40s for early afternoon.

Monday night: Becoming mostly clear with diminishing winds. Low 25-32.

Tuesday: Plenty of sunshine. High 37-44.

Tuesday night: Clear skies. Low 28-35.

Wednesday: Sunshine and a few clouds, breezy. High 37-44.

Thursday: Sunny, breezy, and chilly. High 31-38.

Friday: Mostly sunny, breezy again, milder. High 43-50.

Saturday: Partly sunny. High 41-48.

Sunday: Intervals of clouds and sun. High 43-50.

Some cooler weather is on the way over the next few days.

We’ll start to dry out today, but plenty of clouds will remain in place, and there could be a stray shower as an upper-level disturbance crosses the Northeast. Tuesday will be a dry day but a little cooler as high pressure tries to build in. Things could get a little interesting Tuesday night and Wednesday. Low pressure will pass well offshore, but an extension of it, called an inverted trough, may set up. Normally, trough of low pressure are oriented in a general north-south direction from low pressure to the north. In this case, it’ll be the opposite, south-north from low pressure well to the south, hence the “inverted” part. What this will serve to do is enhance some onshore winds, which will in turn generate some precipitation. With colder air settling in, that precipitation will likely fall as snow. Now, this isn’t a big snowstorm we’re talking about, but across eastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and southern New Hampshire, we could see an inch or two in spots, especially across southeastern Massachusetts.

High pressure builds back in for Thursday, which will likely be a rather chilly day. High pressure slides off to the east, allowing temperatures to moderate for Friday and Saturday. The next system approaches on Sunday, but there are timing issues to be worked out with this storm. Some rain is possible during the day, but for now, it looks like most of the rain will hold off until Sunday night and Monday. This is subject to change however as the models start to hone in on the eventual solution. It does look like Sunday could be quite a mild day ahead of the storm, but again, let’s not etch that in stone just yet, since it is 6 days away.

Monday: Intervals of clouds and sun, slight chance for a shower. High 45-52.

Monday night: Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 29-36.

Tuesday: More clouds than sun, cooler. High 36-43.

Tuesday night: Mostly cloudy with some light snow or snow showers around. Low 24-31.

Wednesday: Mostly cloudy, light snow or snow showers ending. High 32-39.

Thursday: A mix of sun and clouds. High 31-38.

Friday: Partly sunny. High 39-46.

Saturday: Intervals of clouds and sun. High 47-54.

Sunday: Mostly cloudy, breezy, and mild with scattered showers. High 51-58.

The week starts off rather mild, but cooler and drier weather is on the way.

Low pressure heads into the Gulf of Maine this morning, allowing skies to quickly clear out, but winds will become gusty out of the northwest, ushering some cooler air into the region. High pressure builds in for the next several days, with Tuesday and Wednesday featuring cool and breezy conditions. With an upper-level trough of low pressure overhead, we’ll start these days with sunshine, but clouds will develop by midday, with a few pop-up snow or rain showers possible, but they’ll be few and far between. There could be some ocean-effect rain or snow showers across Cape Cod on Tuesday as well. By Thursday, temperatures will start to moderate as high pressure slides off to the east. Another weak storm system will move out of the Great Lakes on Friday, likely spreading some rain showers in late Friday into early Saturday. High pressure then builds in with cooler and drier conditions for the weekend. Clouds start to move back in late Sunday ahead of yet another storm system, but we’ll get into more detail on that one in our Weekend Outlook on Thursday.

Monday: Becoming partly to mostly sunny, breezy. High 48-55 this morning, temperatures may start to drop in the afternoon.

Monday night: Clear through the evening, a few clouds overnight. Low 25-32.

Tuesday: A mix of sun and clouds, chance for a few widely scattered sprinkles or flurries, breezy. High 34-41.

Tuesday night: Clear skies. Low 21-28.

Wednesday: Partly sunny. High 32-39.

Thursday: Sunshine and some afternoon clouds, breezy, not as cool. High 41-48.

Friday: Partly to mostly cloudy, showers likely late in the day and at night, breezy. High 48-55.

Saturday: Early showers, then becoming partly sunny, breezy. High 43-50.

Sunday: Partly to mostly cloudy. High 40-47.

We’ve got an extended stretch of dry weather coming up and as a bonus, it’s going to turn milder too.

We’ll start the week with some sunshine, but clouds move in this afternoon ahead of a weak disturbance. That system may produce a few rain or snow showers late this afternoon and evening, but they’ll be widely scattered and very light. Skies clear out behind that system as high pressure builds in, setting up a sunny but chilly day on Tuesday. There may be a few ocean-effect rain or snow showers across the Outer Cape, but the rest of us will stay dry. Wednesday and Thursday look dry as well with high pressure in control, but temperatures should start to moderate by Thursday as the high slides off to the east. Clouds return on Friday ahead of the next storm system. We’ll be fairly mild ahead of that storm, with some rain likely late Friday into early Saturday. Once that system moves offshore, high pressure returns with drier and cooler conditions again on Sunday.

Monday: Morning sunshine gives way to increasing afternoon clouds, a late-day rain or snow shower is possible. High 39-46.

Monday night: A rain or snow shower during the evening, some clearing after midnight. Low 26-33.

Tuesday: Becoming partly to mostly sunny, a rain or snow shower is possible across the Outer Cape. High 43-50.

Tuesday night: Clear skies. Low 27-34.

Wednesday: Sunshine and some afternoon clouds. High 44-51.

Thursday: Mostly sunny. High 53-60.

Friday: Becoming mostly cloudy, rain possible late in the day, more likely at night, windy. High 56-63.

Saturday: Rain ending early, some clearing in the afternoon, breezy. High 52-59.

Sunday: Partly to mostly sunny and breezy. High 44-51.

The weather pattern will be fairly active for the first half of the week across the region.

We’re starting the week off with a rather cool day today with high pressure in control, but we’ll have plenty of clouds ahead of an approaching low pressure system. A warm front moves through tonight, bringing some showers with it. Those showers end Tuesday morning, setting up a rather mild day, with temperatures likely topping 60 in many locations. As the low pressure system passes by to t north, it will drag a cold front through late in the day, possibly producing another shower or two. High pressure builds in behind that front with much cooler weather on Wednesday. However, we’ll have another low pressure system quickly approaching by late Wednesday. This system will bring in some light rain on Thursday, but if the rain moves in fast enough, some cold air will still be in place, so the rain may start as some freezing rain or sleet well north and west of Boston. Another system may quickly follow for Friday, but this one looks to be a bit farther to the south, so any rain would likely be confined to areas south of the Mass Pike. High pressure builds back in for the weekend.

Monday: Becoming mostly cloudy. High 46-53.

Monday night: Cloudy and becoming breezy with showers developing. Low 41-48 during the evening, temperatures may rise a bit overnight.

Tuesday: Showers end early, then becoming partly to mostly sunny, breezy, and mild with another late-day shower possible. High 60-67.

Tuesday night: Clear to partly cloudy, breezy, turning cooler. Low 32-39.

Wednesday: Sunshine and a few clouds, breezy. High 42-49.

Thursday: Mostly cloudy with showers likely, possibly starting as some freezing rain or sleet from the hills of Worcester County into southern New Hampshire. High 43-50.

Friday: Mostly cloudy, more showers possible during the afternoon and evening, mainly south of the Mass Pike. High 46-53.

Saturday: Any lingering showers end early, then a mix of sun and clouds, breezy. High 47-54.

Sunday: Partly sunny. High 41-48.