Timmy McCarty, 3, scours the bank of the Kansas River for skipping rocks as his grandmother, Maureen Carroll, handles her dog, Izzy. Unseasonably warm weather greeted the trio on their outdoor excursion Monday on the north bank of the Kansas River. Forecasters predict even warmer weather this week, with highs in the upper 40s and low 50s.

Chadd Clary, Lawrence, leads Nescau, an Australian shepherd, and Veda, right, a boxer, around a corner on the trails along the Kansas River. Monday's high of 45 degrees was warm enough for Clary to feel comfortable cycling in shorts. Weather will remain warmer than usual this week with highs in the 50s today and Friday.

It was easy to be underdressed Monday in Lawrence.

A clear, blue sky lured people out of their homes and into the warmer-than-usual weather, but some people thought they could get away with fewer clothing layers than they should have attempted.

The temperature reached a high of 45 degrees Monday afternoon, with wind speeds up to 14 mph.

“It looks warmer than it is out here,” said Brian Thomas, 27, who wore a sweater with no jacket as he hurried down Massachusetts Street to get out of the cold and into a local bookstore.

He and his wife, Amanda, had just come from a movie theater — where they said they’d spotted one moviegoer wearing shorts.

The warmer but windy weather will continue today. Ross Janssen, 6News forecaster, said he expected high temperatures to be between 50 and 55 degrees, far above the normal temperatures in the 30s for this time of year.

But winds will blow out of the south between 15 and 25 mph, with the possibility of stronger gusts up to 30 mph, Janssen said.

“That may push wind chills down into the low to mid-40s,” he said.

What Janssen called a “weak little system” of clouds will enter the Lawrence area Wednesday or Thursday, bringing a chance of rain the morning of New Year’s Day.

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It probably won’t be cold enough for snow or slush, he said.