Any tips for introducing puppies to cats?

[hazelrunpack]

We're about to suddenly complicate things and get a puppy (decided yesterday and pup will arrive on Friday if all goes according to plan ). We've had plenty of puppies, but never a cat before. The cat is extremely dog-friendly (to a fault, in fact ) and we expect he's going to want to play with the new girl as soon as he sees her.

Is there a best way to introduce them, not only to keep JD (the cat) from getting hurt, but to keep him from intimidating Lily (the pup)? Do I hold the cat and let her sniff him all over, but not let them play during the introduction? Or is it safe to just let them play at their first meeting under close supervision? What signs do I look for in cats that tell me they've had enough? (Dog signals, I'm familiar with, but I find cats a bit inscrutable, still. )

Any tips welcome!