reducing feeds for my 8 month old...

[allsquareknickersnofurcoat]

My DS is 8mo and was weaned onto food at 4mo and now eats three full meals a day. However, he is a boobmonster! He has BM at least every 3-4 hours during the day and goes 6 hours max at night between feeds. I am just about getting him used to drinking from a cup as he wont take a bottle and did refuse any fluid at all except BM for a few months. (as I type, he is currently chewing his sippy cup, but that is progress)
I know that my cousin and friend who have babies of the same age are both only feeding once in the evening and once at night, but they are both FF so I know its a poor comparison...

I need to know how I can reduce his feeds as I am going back to work soon, plus I need an idea of what I am aiming for...?

My DS was FF at that age, and he was still having 4 bottles a day at 7, 3, 7 and 11. So my day would have gone like this, 7 am bottle, 8 am breakfast, 10.30 snack possibly, 11.30-12.00 lunch, 3pm bottle, 5pm dinner, 7pm bottle, 11pm bottle dreamfeed. If he woke up between 11 and 7 he got offered water only (mean mummy!). I don't see why it should be any different with BF, but I have no experience myself.
When you have that under control the 11 pm dreamfeed would be the first to go, followed by the 3pm afternoon feed to be replaced by a snack. He is refusing a beaker because he's not that thirsty with all the BM, no big deal. When his food is less liquid and he's feeding from you less, he will get thirsty and drink from a beaker.

my ds also still had 4 day feeds at 8 months - 7, 11, 3 and 7. He dropped the 11am feed around 9 months and the 3pm feed around 10 1/2 months.

At 8 months mine was having 4-5 breastfeeds a day (morning, before nap, before, afternoon nap, after nap, bedtime) and an 11pm dreamfeed. Now at 9.5 months he has around 4 - morning, mid-morning, mid-afternoon, bedtime.

If you're going back to work maybe you could offer formula in a cup mid-morning and mid-afternoon and breastfeed morning and bedtime?