How to I tell my kids?

UPDATE: If you follow me on twitter you probably already heard the good news that Alice is alive and well (and LOCKED in the house from now on). I learned the hard way that there was a cat with very similar markings living in our campground and that is the cat that was hit crossing the road by our house.  I am still in shock that our Ali showed up on our front porch alive and well at about 7:20. It was an emotional morning to say the least! Thank you for your kind words everyone!!!

original post follows....

Today is Julia's sixth birthday, but I don't feel like celebrating. An hour ago I left to get birthday doughnuts and my headlights lit up what looked like a coon on the road in front of the park. But it wasn't. It was our Ali. Our sweet sweet Ali Cat.

The same kitty who less than 24 hours ago was budging in on Elsa's 15 month portraits. She was so good with Elsa and let her love on her without complaint. Elsa's favorite sign is Kitty because she loves her so. We all did.

How do I tell my kids that she's gone? I'm going to put on a brave face and try to get through the day and wait until tomorrow to tell them so we don't ruin Julia's birthday. If you have any tips on helping kids grieve the loss of a pet I would greatly appreciate it. As you know we lost our dog of 14 years earlier this year, but this is different. Conor was more my dog, but the kids adored Alice.

What once was a family portrait outtake is now adored as well.

You are missed already Ali Cat!