Sun, rain and snow: It’s coming in that order this week in southern Ontario

Is it summer yet? No. How about spring? Not quite.

Even though it felt like winter was left behind this weekend, we still have some ways to go before casting off the coats and shedding our mukluks.

Officially, spring arrives on Friday, March 20, at precisely 10:46 a.m., but until then, we can count on cold, rain and even snow.

Yes, snow.

According to Environment Canada, Monday starts off looking good in southern Ontario with sunny skies and temperatures reaching up to 14 C. The nighttime low will be 4 degrees.

So far, so good.

Tuesday, however, will give us some indication of what is in store for the next little while, as rain is expected throughout the day, even though temperatures will hit a spring-like high of 14 C. Overnight, it will drop down to 3 C.

On Wednesday, more rain is expected throughout the day, but temperatures will begin to fall as the high will only reach 10 C. The evening is when the trouble starts. Along with the rain, there will be snow flurries mixed in, as we again fall below the freezing point with a low of -5 degrees.

As if you didn’t see this coming, Thursday will bring a chance of flurries — snow that is — that could stick to the ground as the lack of sunshine combined with a high of  1 C won’t make for ideal melting conditions. The expected overnight low of -6 C won’t help, either.

For Friday, it’s not a chance of flurries…there’s a full-blown risk of snow! Again, the temperature will hit a high of 1 C during the day and bottom out at -5 C at night as the snow turns into flurries.

So what does this mean for Saturday? A shovel? Maybe. It depends on the “chance” of snow the day before it becomes a reality. Either way, it will likely get no warmer than 0 C and the day will be cloudy, overcast, and gray.