My 7 mths old bb can stand and few days ago she climbed our sofa. I went clinic for vaccine ytd, nurse said we can let them stand as long as we dun force them. She warned me not to use walker though, as baby tends to tip toe-ing, not good for their bone development. So coincidence, there was food demo, and the nurse said we can cut apple or pear to a long thin slice, steam it, and let baby hold and eat by themselves.. When i asked if apple or pear is too tough, she explained that baby gums are actually very strong. They can use it to chew food. In fact we should train them from young to eat by themselves, so dun need to always be spoon fed. Also, starting 7-8mths, we can make their meats (chicken, fish) slightly chunkier. I am actually surprised..