A difficult subject with kids

Kendall bluntly asked me today at breakfast, "Daddy, when are you going to get a job?"

"As soon as possible," I told her.  "I'm trying."

"Why don't you just go back to work for al.com?," she asked.

As my mind spun trying to figure out how to answer, Emily chimed in.  "They probably already hired somebody to do the job he did," Emily suggested.

"Well, not really," I said.  "It's more like they don't just have that position anymore."

"So, they don't do the stuff you did there anymore?," Emily asked.

"No, that's not exactly it either," I said as I wondered how to give any sort of answers that would make sense to a 5-year-old and an 8-year-old.

Apparently, it was good enough for Kendall though, as he moved on to a new angle.  "Are we going to be poor if you don't get a job?," she asked.

How do you tell a 5-year-old that it's nothing she needs to worry about without being condescending, and without having to explain severance packages or the interview process?  I promise her that our family is going to be fine, but she still sees that her dad has been at home for two months.  And she knows her dad is supposed to be going to work.

This is the reason I kept my employment situation private for as long as possible.  I didn't want my girls to worry.  Little kids shouldn't have to worry about stuff like this!  They should be concerned with playing and singing and decorating for Christmas.