If you're dreaming of a white Christmas, Missoula's weather so far this season may not have you in an optimistic mood, but National Weather Service Meteorologist Dan Zumpfe says that there is still a good chance a winter wonderland is on the way.

"The pattern that we have now that hass been fairly mild, relatively dry and snow-less is going to be changing here over the next week and we believe that's going to be extending through Christmas as well," Zumpfe said. "Looks like we're not going to get any snow down in the valleys around Missoula until probably a few days before Christmas."

This week, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a climate report showing the likelihood of a white Christmas based on historical data (1981 - 2010). By those standards, Missoula's odds of a white Christmas really aren't that high."

"They are saying that our chances are reasonable, in that 30 to 40 percent range, but looking back in time, it varies quite a bit from year to year based on what kinds of weather systems are around western Montana and how the jet streams are behaving," Zumpfe said.

Zumpfe predicts that Missoula will have one to three inches of snow by Christmas Day, but admits that calling the weather more than ten days out can be tricky.

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