Jeanette, we call that competition "baby races." One of the more unpleasant competitions of parenthood, in my opinion.

An important part of "readiness" to start solids is to realize the modeling of the baby's face. When they're "little," their cheeks are all chubby, and fill all of the space from cheek to gumline. When they start becoming ready for solids, their faces start to remodel, and some of the chub changes. While they still have chubby cheeks, they have a slimmer look to the face, and pockets start to develop in the space between the cheek and gum. 

Think about when you are eating, and moving food around in your mouth. Some of it ends up on the outside of the gum line, intentionally or not. Imagine trying to eat a mouthful of food, and not have anywhere to store it or move it until you're ready to deal with it. Choking, gagging, spitting out. 

It's the same story as others have stated: look at the baby, not the clock or the calendar. 

Best wishes,
Sam Doak
Marietta oh

<<

But I've also found that when we went to "skill readiness" or "maturity" - it became a 'competition' ... MY baby is "ready" at 5, 4, 3 MONTHS compared to HER baby - MY baby is [fill in the blank] [brighter/faster/more coordinated]>>

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