Chicago weather: Weekend snow gives way to warmer days ahead

CHICAGO - It was a wintry day in the north and northwest suburbs. Between four and five inches of snow were reported in parts of McHenry County.

Chicago-area snowfall totals

By the numbers:

Below is a list of some of the highest totals that came in from Sunday's snow.

• Harvard: 5.0"
• Marengo: 4.0"
• DeKalb: 3.5"
• Elburn: 2.5"
• Huntley: 2.4"
• Gurnee: 2.0"
• Lake Villa: 2.0"
• Prairie Grove: 2.0"

Tonight will bring clearing skies with cold temperatures dropping into the mid 20s. Normal low temperatures for mid-March are in the low 30s, so it'll be a colder than average night.

Future forecast

What's next:

Warmer air arrives on Monday with sunny skies becoming partly cloudy. Temperatures will warm into the mid 50s with gusty south winds. Winds will likely gust as high as 30 to 35 mph in the afternoon and early evening.

Another nice day is on tap for Tuesday with temperatures warming into the mid 60s under partly cloudy skies. Temperatures will be a little cooler along the lake in NE Illinois thanks to the lake.

Wednesday will bring rain and possibly thunderstorms with highs in the mid 60s. A few of the storms could be on the stronger side, so we'll have to watch our midweek system closely. Drastically falling temperatures are expected Wednesday night into early Thursday. In fact, we could see rain changing over to snow for a few hours going into early Thursday. Snow will end shortly after daybreak Thursday and then temperatures will warm into the mid 40s.

Friday will be pleasant with partly sunny to mostly cloudy skies and highs in the mid 50s. The weekend may feature on and off rain showers with highs around 50.