Call it Ma Nature's comeback. Just when some of us were thinking we may leap into a new year with virtually no snowfall down low this winter, this weekend is expected to bring on the white stuff.

Steven Van Horn, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service, expects 4 to 8 inches of snow today and tonight

"It will start out light and intensify in the afternoon and night," Van Horn said. "This will be our first significant storm as far as snowfall area-wide."

Van Horn said some areas of North Idaho could receive as much as 9 inches of snow in the next 24 hours and the mountains may get 7 to 10 inches.

Snow is expected to taper late Sunday and give way to dry and colder temperatures for the rest of the week.

"Bitterly cold northeast winds will develop by Monday morning," a NWS report states. "Temperatures will be well below average most of next week as arctic high pressure settles over the Inland Northwest."

The highs on Monday and Tuesday are only expected to reach the teens and the lows could dip below zero counting the wind-chill factor.

The highs later in the week are predicted to reach the lower 20s.

"The winds should weaken on Tuesday, but it will still be quite cold," Van Horn said.

Unlike the dustings of snow the valleys have had this winter that have quickly melted, Van Horn said the next snow will likely be around for a while with the cold front that follows.