Peter just went from 3 naps down to 2 about 6 weeks ago. I thought it would never happen!!

Similar to your LO, his sleeps were becoming smaller, and he was able to stay awake longer, so it just seemed to me like it was time for something to change. I started by really just taking each day at a time- there were times he would still need 3 naps, and other times 2 naps would be fine. Eventually he dropped permanently to 2 naps. I found the 2-3-4 guideline quite helpful: wake up, be up for 2 hours, have a nap, be up for 3 hours, have a nap, be up for 4 hours, go to bed. This has suited him pretty well, so I just started stretching out how long he was up for in the middle of the day, and that has worked. I did find that once he adjusted to the two naps a day, the length of his sleeps increased, and his bedtime has become a little earlier. He sleeps better now, I think.

I was pretty clueless about it all too, and I think it happens a little differently for all babies- you will know what works best for your baby. But I think it always involves stretching their awake time a bit, and (hoping) their nap time increases! (nb: this last bit was a little easier for Peter because dropping to two naps coincided with him starting to crawl around like a mad thing, so he was using more energy, so was more tired and slept longer).

Good luck! Its nice when they have two nap and sleep longer, although my whole day routine has had to change!!