I'm feeding my little one purees right now. how will I know when I can advance to something less mushy/smooth? she's currently 6.5 months. we started introducing solids when she was abt 5 months.

Based on my personal experience, baby should be able to sit up unassisted, baby has been having regular pureed meals for a period of time. This enables baby to practice swallowing food and has lessen the tongue pushing. Most importantly you need to feel that baby is ready and be comfortable with it. I always believe in the mother instinct. You can also try to give lightly mashed food for a start. This will also help you gauge if baby is able to swallow. Here is a link which maybe able to give you more information. http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/readyforsolids.htm Overall, its an amazing and exciting experience for you and your child. Have fun and enjoy the moments. Hope this helps.

If your baby is showing interest in the food that she is eating now (asking for more is a good sign), you can try experimenting with different textures. Try something lumpy first and see how she takes it. Then progress from there. Typically, my friends would start to introduce these at around 7-8 months so that babies can get used to chewing. Always good to have a variety of tastes and textures so that baby. From there, you can also start to see your baby's preference. :)

Around 8 months for chunkier food - you can do steamed veggies or even things like Gerber puffs and baby pasta