The coldest temperatures of the winter have caused a few school delays and higher heating bills.

How long will this cold snap last?The National Weather Service says the mercury probably won't get above freezing before Monday or Tuesday. Overnight single digit readings are expected tonight, tomorrow night, and Saturday night.There's a chance for snow on Friday, but according to the NWS, the heaviest precipitation is expected to be south of us. Delaware and Maryland are expected to have plowable amounts, while we should only get a dusting to an inch or two. However, it's still too early to be certain regarding the path of Friday's storm.As far as the temperatures are concerned, lows both tonight and tomorrow night are expected to be around 6 degrees with wind chill values of minus 2.Tomorrow's high temp is predicted to be 19. On Friday, the high will be about 20, with light snow, while the low Friday night will be about 12. Saturday night, lows dip into the single digits again. Finally, after that, things will start to gradually improve. On Sunday the high will be about 24, on Monday temps could reach 32, and on Tuesday, it might be near 40 degrees during the day.Yesterday's high at the Lehigh Valley Airport was 23, with the low being 11. This was 13 degrees below normal, say meteorologists with the NWS.While it obviously is very cold, the temperature isn't even near a record. The record for today at Lehigh Valley International Airport is -9, set in 1961. The record high is 62, set in 1999.Officials warn that you should not leave your pets outdoors overnight in this weather.Incidentally, the coldest location in the lower 48 states Monday was Embarrass, Minn., at 36 below. On Sunday it was Babbitt, Minn., at 29 below, according to the National Weather Service.