My 7mo old just plays with his food and doesn't put it in his mouth

Just keep offering and let him explore the new textures. Its normal.

My daughter didn't really start eating until closer to 1

That's normal, he's learning about food by playing. 7 months is still little he doesn't need to be eating yet so just keep offering and letting him play. Eat with him so he can watch what you do with food, he'll work it out eventually

There are some good tips here. https://raisingchildren.net.au/babies/breastfeeding-bottle-feeding-solids/solids-drinks/solid-foods-practical-tips-for-getting-started

I've always included my babies during family meal times so where possible, eat together, babies learn by observing too.

With my second child I found he wouldn't touch solids until he had a quick drink of water first. Once he quenched his thirst, he ate really well, so just something to consider.

Otherwise I would just ensure bub isn't too full with milk before trying solids (overnight milk feeds often lead to babies being too full for solids during the day). It's normal for babies to refuse a certain food up to ten times or so. Persistence, calmness, and encouraging positive association with solids is the main thing at this stage. Offer a mix of puree/soft mashed foods and finger foods. You can also experiment with spices - no sugar or salt but cinnamon, cumin, coriander etc can make it more exciting.

thanks so much! How would I stop overnight feeds? He always wakes at 3am for a feed and screams because he is so hungry!

He loves spices. I make him mexican beans, soups, curries, lentil bolognese etc. He eats this on potato mash which has been good. He also eats oat porridge but solid foods he doesnf really put in his mouth.
I will check out the link and also try water first next time. Thanks!

thank you, we do usually at dinner time just not breakfast

thank you, this makes me feel so much better

How often are you feeding baby overnight? If it's just once then I wouldn't stop that, and my breastfed 2nd child continued to have one feed overnight until he was 9 months. If you are feeding to sleep multiple times at night, I would look at resettling another way after bub has had their feed. Generally, babies older than 6 months should be getting enough calories during the day to sleep through the night, or only need one feed at most. The Raising Children Network (my go to for reliable info!) has further info and some advice for formula fed babies https://raisingchildren.net.au/babies/sleep/settling-routines/night-weaning

It could be that bub is waking hungry at night because they are not getting enough calories during the day, and they don't have enough appetite/hunger for solids during the day as they fill up too much on milk overnight. So another option you could consider, is offering water in a sippy cup at night instead of milk, if bub just needs to quench thirst, or try shortening feeds.