How about redbud?

redbud .. again ...

i also have red flowering chestnut... o'neills red buckeye ...

also look into variegated trees... which give an all year show.. like variegated liquidamber .... you should have one of those.. just to be able to say the name repeatedly ... check girard nursery for such ...

i also have a variegated sycamore .... man its been a long winter.. cant recall the names... lol.. eskimo sunset ... acer psuedoplanatus i think ... a fake sycamore maple ... go figure on that nonsense latin name

tulip poplar.. but as a granny .. i dont know if it will flower soon enough ...

flowering cherry ....

in the bush category ... flowering almond ... hardy magnolia [tree or bush, at your pleasure] .... quince ...

variegated english oak is fascinating.. with its striped green and yellow acorns ... quercus robar 'variegata' ...

OMG ... almost forgot tricolor beech ... roseomarginata ... what fagus .. .. probably sylv .... that tree doesnt need flowers .. and its not really 3 colored.. but who cares. .. specimen below being studied by a dwarf ...

so many options.. and you will probably lack one of the following:

too little space

too little budget

too little time

good luck

ken
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Consider Serviceberry (Amelanchier sp.), Fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus), and Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum, it flowers later in the year).

Evergreen conifers make a good contrasting backdrop as long as they are dense and solid. Many flowering trees will show up better with such a background than without. A white dogwood could contrast starkly with a dark green background. Bluish conifers are good behind pink-flowered trees.

If the spruces are thin to some height then they will not be so good for this, except for where and when the new specimen tree(s) grow up high enough to be seen against the parts that are still well covered. Planting evergreen shrubs in front of the bald parts of the spruces might be a good idea.

Everything will have to go far enough out in front of the spruces to not be deformed by the continued sideways spread and increasing height of the spruces.

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions. Looks like I have some researching to do.

Ken, that tricolor beech is beautiful. Would that work out in an open area as opposed to a bed?

Too litte time ....no we are retired
Too little space...no we are on 4 acres
Too little budget...maybe this yr. but since I will be buying small trees (so they can grow with the child) it may not be too much of a problem. I do have to buy two though.

Thanks again. Kathie

When my daughter was born, I planted a pink dogwood. I guess my idea was that pink is traditional for girls. I suppose I could plant a blue dogwood if the next one's a boy!...

You might consider adding some special significance to your planting. For instance, if one of your grandchildren's names happens to be Elizabeth, you might consider a cornus kousa 'Elizabeth'. Or a magnolia 'Elizabeth'. Some find this corny, no doubt!...but hey, we're all a little sappy where kids are concerned.

mbuckmaster, what a nice idea to add the special significance to the planting. Coincidentially, one of the trees will be planted for Megan Elizabeth, the other for Kaitlyn Michelle. They were monoamniotic identical twins and Megan Elizabeth did not survive. So actually one of the trees will be "in memory of". Kaitlyn will be celebrating her first birthday on Apr. 1.

When I started this tradition, my intention was to plant something that was in bloom at the time the child was born. Our first was born in May...thus the cherry blossom. The next came in Dec, and the following one in Feb. So that blew that idea since nothing is blooming at that time of yr in NE PA. So I decided to do flowering trees to represent the new life of springtime. (sappy?? you betcha). Twins arrived in Oct 06 and then these twins last Apr. That is why I was considering pink dogwood as well. Where did you plant yours as far as placement goes?

Sorry for going on....Kathie

In addition to flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) which has disease problems, look into Kousa dogwood (Cornus Kousa) and Pagoda dogwood (Cornus alternifolia). I have both fringe tree and redbud, and like them both. Silverbell (Halesia) is another spring blooming tree. Tree lilacs are smaller, but still tree form.

I am very sorry for your loss, and my unintentional faux pas.

I love your idea of bloom time coinciding with birth time. I can't speak knowledgeably to zone 5, but in April we have fringe tree (chionanthus) and snowbell (styrax) in bloom here. In addition to the great suggestions above, you might consider the styrax, which is a much nicer tree than the name sounds. In fact, it is sadly underused. It typically has beautiful bell-like white blooms in mid-spring that can be fragrant. It tolerates different soils well, full sun to light shade, and is fairly pest-free (unlike our pink cornus floridas!). The styrax japonicus is the nursery standard and a fine tree; styrax obassia is more fragrant with bigger blooms. A native choice that is shrubbier in general is styrax officinalus. 'Emerald Pagoda' is a japonicus that's highly recommended by those in the know. There are also 'rosea' varieties for pink flowers. Snowbells are well-behaved and easy to garden under also (deep roots). In fact, they would be a very fitting tribute to your grandchildren.

All of the suggestions in this thread are excellent. Whatever you choose, God bless you for choosing this way to honor your family! I wish more people would follow this example.

kathieo - thank you for posting your question in this forum. I read about having one's grandchildren plant a fast-growing tree (like a weeping willow) so they can each watch "their" tree grow. I love the idea of planting trees that bloom during the season when the children are born.

mbuckmaster - thanks for putting our thoughts and feelings into words.