Forecast: Near Record-Breaking Highs This Holiday

On the ever-fluctuating temperature scale here in southern New England, we will be on the higher side of December readings into the upcoming weekend. High temperatures late Christmas Eve and the first part of Christmas Day will be near record-breaking, but likely not broken.

Christmas 2014 will be in the top 10 mildest Christmases since 1871.

A strong low pressure area across the Great Lakes will funnel unseasonably mild air and copious amounts of water to the region later today into the first part of Christmas morning.

Winds will also be gusty prompting a high wind advisory for the area roughly from Norwood to Providence, Rhode Island and south the Cape Cod and the islands.

There might be some power outages with the strong winds, but I don't expect anything widespread.

As of mid-morning the heavy rain was still several hours away. If you have errands to do this morning or are traveling you won't be dealing with more than a few showers or drizzle.

Later this afternoon rain, heavy at times, will move into the region and continue periodically 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Thursday.

Skies will then clear and winds will continue to be gusty. Around sunrise Christmas temperatures will be 57-63 degrees, but then fall back into the 40s by dark.

The weekend looks nice and dry with sunshine Saturday and highs near 50. It will be cooler on Sunday, but not cold. Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

Wednesday: Cloudy with drizzle this morning. Steady rain later this afternoon. Mild highs between 50-55 degrees by late in the day.

Wednesday night: Rain, with thunderstorms is also possible. Winds becoming gusty late at night. Some downpours possible. Temperatures rising to near 60 late at night.

Thursday: Rain and wind early, then partial clearing and blustery. Highs around 60 before noon, then falling to the 40s after sunset.

Friday: Sunny, with a high 43-47.

Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 50.

Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 45.

You can follow David’s weather updates on Twitter at @growingwisdom.