When Lindsey and Paul Boardman's musical daughters, Carys, age 5, and Ffion, age 4, tired of their toy xylophones and tambourines, Mom and Dad needed to come up with something new. Then one day, the family passed a neighbor's porch hung with several wind chimes. The girls were enchanted, and inspiration struck. Paul, who plays bass, mandolin, and even the Australian aboriginal didgeridoo, set out to design a gigantic musical instrument for the girls. He cut copper pipe into five different lengths and hung the makeshift chimes from the branches of a small apple tree in their backyard. Lindsey added cymbals made from metal dessert plates she picked up at a yard sale. The result: a Music Tree.
"The girls love banging on the chimes and plates with spoons," Lindsey says. "And the noise is in the yard now, not in the kitchen. Plus, when they're playing it, I don't have to keep such a close watch because I know where they are."
