jelr, I was looking up how much formula a baby needs earlier on today and I found something that said (and it's just a guideline, of course all babies are different, some are hungrier than others and their appetite can vary day to day) 2.5oz per pound of body weight. with that, an 8lb baby would take five 4oz bottles in 24 hours.
ruby, shadow is right in that I'm also combining breast and formula and it's going ok. I started supplementing because Adam was feeding for hours yet never coming off looking and behaving satisfied, he lost 10% of his birth weight and wasn't regaining well, and he had a touch of jaundice. I had suspected before I had him that I'd have trouble breastfeeding and was resigned to not being able to at all, but it's not been as bad as that - I CAN feed him and he's getting a fair proportion of his milk from me, so I am happy and grateful and ok about adding formula. He is fine about switching between the two, though he does spit up quite a bit of formula (he rarely spits up boob milk). Since we added the formula, though, he's regained and surpassed his birth weight, jaundice is gone, he looks satisfied and he sleeps for up to 4 hours at a time. I still let him breastfeed on demand and he can feed for an hour or more. There are times when I know he's getting a reasonable amount because I feel the tingling of the let down (and my other boob usually starts leaking) and I hear him gulping, and then he pulls off and passes out for a little while - but more often he nibbles away, dozing.
I figure he will only take the formula he needs, though, and he does take a fair bit - we offer him 120ml (4oz) bottles usually 4 times a day and he usually leaves some (30ml, sometimes as much as 90ml; a couple of times he's refused it altogether). I breastfeed up to 8 times a day and I'm sure my supply has increased quite a bit, if the tingling and the gulping and leaking are anything to go by anyway. But I don't express (I did but found it demoralising, depressing and painful) so I don't know for sure the exact quantity he is getting. I reckon he weighs 8.75lb or so now and so calculating on the figures I found earlier, at 2.5oz per pound of body weight, he'd need about 22oz per day; I think he gets about 12oz of formula, based on an average feed of 3oz four times a day, so the rest is breastmilk - it might be less than half, but I don't know - it's all good stuff.
I'd like to keep the formula amount constant now or even reduce it a little and hope that I can feed more breastmilk to suit hs needs, but if I can't I can't. It's been almost a month and I am so happy I have been able to do it at all. It's tiring and takes up so much time feeding him both ways - 20-30 mins on each breast, then another 15 or so to take the bottle plus time for winding/cleaning up spit, not to mention the hassle of having to sterilise bottles etc - but one way or another it'll settle down in due course!
he has loads of heavy, wet nappies; he has been pooing every day the last few days but sometimes it's ot every day, other times it's more than once (yesterday was 3 times) and the poo looks like bf poo (bright, sweet smelling mustard with grainy bits).
as for feeding breastmilk only when you have enough for a full feed - well, as I am not expressing there is no way I can know if I have enough for a full feed - I assume when he only takes a small amount of formula after that I had nearly enough. and sometimes I feed him in the night and he goes back to sleep for a few hours, so then I assume he was satisfied as well... and I do think he has less wind when I feed him... but - ack, I am just doing what I have to! maybe if I didn't hate expressing I'd be able to give him exclusive formula feeds and exclusive breast feeds but I do.
shadow, great to hear V is getting on better with the new bottles! and that you've had a go with the cloth nappies - I put one on Adam the other day but it was too big for him - he couldn't sit up in it properly, poor baby, it was all stiff round his waist! Also, he did a massive poo in it and though it didn't leak onto his clothes, it leaked into the wrap, so I think his little thighs are still too thin to get a snug fit. I've put them away for a couple more weeks, hopefully next time I try them they'll fit better. They washe great anyway, though I have to say it was a daunting sight that first cloth nappy filled with a big runny yellow poo! I rinsed it into a bucket with the shower head to get most of it off then stuck it in the machine and it came up perfect (though some staining on the wrap - might need something a bit more heavy duty to get that out).
one thing I never realised - how long it takes to get things done now... like, I plan to go out then Adam needs feeding and that takes over an hour, then there's a nappy and a change and then I have to get ready, then into the car seat... and before I know it it's 2 hours after I thought I'd be leaving!
oh and Shadow, I went to a big Mothercare yesterday and bought a Close baby carrier! haven't tried it on AE yet (he was just post-feed and I was worried he'd do a sick on it when I had a go) but I will later.
from me, his feeds are SO much less stressful with them and although he still needs to be burped afterwards, I think the amount of air he is gulping down during feeds is dramatically reduced with Dr Brown bottles 
that has flown by!! Has she had her heart surgery yet sweetie? Hope it all goes swimmingly for her, I'm sure she will be fine, she is such a strong little lass! 
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to you all.
hehehe
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