Break out those shovels, and prepare to get out the measuring sticks.

A sizable snowstorm is on its way to our area, with most expected to receive at least a foot if not more.

The snow is expected to move into the area Wednesday afternoon and be heavy, with several inches expected to fall per hour at times, according to Tom Kines, a senior meteorologist with AccuWeather.

“Everybody’s talking doom and gloom,” Kines said. “And it’s coming.”

Kines said the snowfall is expected to begin dropping around lunchtime.

“I suspect most of the morning is fine, but then around the lunch hour, and certainly through the afternoon, the snow comes in and continues through tomorrow night,” he said. “Snow will be heavy at times, and sometimes it’s going to be very, very heavy, snowing at the rate of 2 to 3 inches an hour.

“Even an inch an hour is heavy snow, but when you start talking 2-3-inches an hour, that’s a lot.”

In short, Kines said to expect a lot of snow.

“Even though the wind’s not going to be an issue, you’re going to know it’s a snowstorm just because of the rate of snow; that alone will lower the visibility,” he said. “Obviously if you have to do shopping or errands tomorrow, get it done early; once it starts snowing, road conditions will go down quickly.

“It’s going to be a mess. Wednesday night, I suspect travel will be a no-go.”

Kines said the storm should move out of the area around daybreak Thursday, though there might be some leftover snow early on.

“But, for the most part, Thursday is a dry day, and people will be out with their yardsticks measuring snow,” he said. “Everybody’s going to measure at least a foot; there’s going to be places picking up a foot-and-a-half, and if everything fell into place, some might measure 22-24 inches.

“In general, I would say a 12- to 15-inch snowstorm, which is still pretty good. Some measure 18 and maybe a couple 22-24. Everybody sees at least a foot.”

Kines said Friday appears to be a pretty good day, as the sun comes back out with temperatures expected to be around freezing.

He said temperatures over the weekend will likely be above freezing, and while there might be a little bit of rain or snow on Sunday, it isn’t going to amount to much.

However, Kines noted that the nighttime temperatures are expected to be below freezing, and as a result, any melting that takes place is going to be very minimal, and to watch out for any wet spots that develop during the afternoon that could turn into slick spots by evening.

“I think for the most part with this storm, it’s going to be a dry snow,” he said. “Probably the silver lining for those who have to shovel or plow is that a dry snow is a lot easier to move around than a wet snow.”

Kines said with so much snow anticipated to fall, we could be in the makings for a white Christmas after all.

“Being a week before Christmas, we get a big storm, maybe people wonder if it will stick around,” he said. “We will have a white Christmas; it certainly makes it a lot easier for Santa.”