It hardly seems five minutes since the long hot summer then all the chaos of Back to School. But here we are in October already and it will be December before we know it.

So why not make this year the one where you are prepared well in advance? Many of us think we don't like Christmas, but a lot of that is to do with memories of lots of stress and hassle. If you leave everything till the last minute then that is bound to be the case. But preparing early can change all that.

• Plan what you are doing

For many families this is the big one. Who is going to host, who is going where and when, and whose turn is it to get landed with the difficult guest that no-one really wants! Those kind of decisions often get put off because it can feel awkward, but really do need to be made now if there is any hope of getting on top of Christmas preparations.

We offer a range of short term online loans which may be just what you need to tide you over the festive season

It's important to think about what you would actually like to do rather than going along with everyone else's expectations.