A Difficult Transition Week

My daughter is at the age where her last nap of the day is starting to go away. The sleep book I had read had warned me of this, but there still really isn't a way out of the awful transition period. This week, or at least the last few days (not sure how long it's actually been, just know how long it feels like it's been--forever), she gets tired around her usual 3-4 o'clock time in the afternoon, but will NOT go down for a nap despite many MANY attempts by me. I can rock her, walk her, sing to her, read to her, nurse her, give her a binky--all the usuals--and it doesn't do any good. The rest of the night until her bedtime at about 7pm is spent with a very fussy, tired, and might I say stubborn baby. I know she still NEEDS that last nap, but I just can't get her to actually go to sleep. She fights it so hard! She wants to stay up so she doesn't miss out on anything, but she's so tired that she isn't content with any of our usual playtime activities. She will, however, go to sleep if we go for a drive anytime after she's gotten overtired. I discovered this on a late afternoon trip to Safeway. I've always known that she is more apt to fall asleep in the car when she's tired, but the idea of going through the theatrics of getting us both out the door and buckled in the car just to put her to sleep seems a bit much. I have always been successful using other easier and more natural methods--until now. So do I let her afternoon naps go away even though she still acts like she needs them? Or do I saddle up everyday for a car ride to lull her to sleep? For now, I'm going to go with the first. I will still try to get her to sleep at that time. I might have to start doing activities before her nap that will stimulate her more so that maybe she's more ready for a nap later in the day, like taking her for a walk around the neighborhood or finding new activities indoors (it's quite chilly out!). So this week I have had more difficult afternoons while getting practically no sleep at night while feeling very run down. Things seem to happen in threes, but this set of three has been repeating itself every day and night this week. Thank goodness for the weekend! I get the chance to catch up on some MUCH needed rest while hubby takes care of the baby :)