Toddler's Naps

5 am is very early to be up for him so it's understandable that he's still tired. I'd say you maybe should let him take 2 naps if he still needs it. My daughter dropped her 1 nap (only at home on weekends) when she was 2 and has always had a hard time napping. Even when she did it was only 1/2-1 hour. I do not think you should expect him to be napping for 3-4 hours, but maybe two naps of 1-1.5 hours each. Why not try it for a day and see how it goes? You could always put him down early if he doesn't take a 2nd nap and see what time he gets up!

Sounds just like mine (28mos). Up at 5, ready to sleep by 9 or 10. But I get him outside and wake him back up.
He only sleeps 1.5-2hrs for his nap each day. I think that's average. I don't know any 2yos that sleep more than that for a nap.
Have you tried moving his bedtime around?
For my DS, it doesn't matter, so it's just become a need for distraction when the crankiness sets in. That would be the only thing I'd think to try.
Otherwise, maybe try for some quiet time instead of the second nap. Put on a show or read books for an hour. That might help.

My son had the same problem. I started pushing his nap time to later in the day because if he starts his nap later he tends to 1.) Sleep longer for his hap and 2.) Wake up later in the morning, regardless of how long his nap was or what time he went to bed. Later nap = later morning FOR MY SON. Every kid is different but just moving his nap time has moved his wake up from 5am to 6am (much more reasonable). If he won't take two naps, move his nap to later, but expect him to be tired around his earlier nap time. Hope that helps.

A.,
If he is acting tired, he probably is. My philosophy is if they take a short nap and are still acting tired, they get to have a quiet rest time about 3 hrs after they get up from the first nap. I let them have books or something to play quietly in the bed and if they are still awake after 1/2 hr I get them up. usually they will play and cry and then go to sleep. I also am a "sleep Nazi" mom. When my babies and toddlers get up earlier then 12 hrs after their bed time, I go in and comfort them and tell them that it is still sleeping time and put them back in bed. Since yours is used to getting up at 5, it will take a while to retrain him. He will not be happy the first couple times. And it will be just like you are training him to sleep though the night again, (still is night in my world:) ). If you don't want to have him wake later, It is normal for toddlers to get tired about 2-3 hrs after they wake in the morning anyway. I would definitely put him down then. And then when he wakes up feed him lunch and let him play for a few hrs and do your nap routine again. I would try to give him the second nap and I would also put him to bed 12 hrs before he wakes up in the morning. So if he wakes up at 5 and that is what you like, try putting him down for the night at 5 pm. Babies need at least 11 hrs uninterrupted sleep at night and naps adding up to 12-14 hrs. Every child is different, but if he seams tired and not happy, he probably needs more sleep.
Good luck!
here is a good site
http://www.thehealthsuccesssite.com/daily-sleep-requireme...
E.

It sounds to me like you are saying he goes to bed at 8pm and wakes up at 5am. That's only 9 hours of sleep at night, so if he's only getting 1-1.5 hours of naptime, then he's only around 10-10.5 total every day. I don't think that's enough for his age. I found a chart on Babycenter that says 2-year-olds need, on average, 11.5-15.5 hours of sleep. Maybe you can move his bedtime up a little bit so he's sleeping more at night? This may combat the morning crankiness. Or is there a reason he wakes up so early? I know some kids are like that, but maybe you could try to get him to sleep in a little.

I know it's hard, though. My son dropped his first nap on his own when he was just over a year, and it took awhile for us to figure out what amount of nighttime sleep he would need because his afternoon nap was only an hour or two long. Now that he's almost 3, he often doesn't even nap at all, but he usually sleeps a good 11-12 hours at night (8pm-sometime between 7 and 8am). Good luck with figuring out your little one!

Nope, be thankful he had two naps for so long! My daughter gave up her second nap at 9 months and her one nap at 18 months. They only need 11-12 hours total. My daughter gets her at night.

I'd try playing with his bedtime.