Be prepared -- those 'sleeps for 2 hours' times pretty quickly will now come to an end and you will have a more wakeful, playful and demanding puppy. :lol:
Using a crate is fine for the kind of thing you want to do.... BUT puppies need to be crate TRAINED however -- generally that takes some time -- before just leaving them alone in a crate. Otherwise it can be very distressing for the pup, and also create negative associations for the crate, which you definitely don't want
Please download Ian Dunbar's free book after You Get Your Puppy at
www.dogstardaily.com/free-downloads, which will explain crate training in detail. There are also free handouts there with handy summaries of how to crate train, housetrain, etc -- just register for free on the site to get them. Some whining is normal but crate training helps to work towards preventing/curtailing it and is very important. If you respond to whining in any way it simply trains the puppy that whining gets a response -- eg he is then training you. It will extinguish if you totally ignore him, saying nothing etc. But this approach again, needs to be done in association with proper crate training, not simply leaving him for 30 minutes when he has never been trained to be in a crate, awake, for that amount of time, much less longer (night sleeping does not count).
In general, crate training involves working to create good associations with the crate and slowly leaving the puppy for longer periods alone in the crate. You need to be using the crate for him to help housetraining -- you def do not want a puppy running around without arm's-length, constant supervision or you'll have endless setbacks to the housetraining programme. Ian Dunbar explains all this. I also have pinned to the training forum, a selecton of links to good training sites all of which cover positive methods crate training (and remind that the crate is a tool, not a kennel for long hours of people being away.
). You are absolutely right to want to have him in his crate for short periods while you do other things and you can incorporate that into your crate training at this time.
You must keep in mind that a puppy his age cannot hold itself longer than about 2 hours in a crate (and it will take you a while to work up to leaving him that length as part of crate training!) and thus leaving him in the crate has to be part of his housetraining regime so he gets out as needed. You do not ever want to have accidents in the crate or he will grow to view the crate as a fine place to relieve himself.