Girl, I feel your pain. If I were any more pear-shaped, I'd have a stem sprouting from my head. (My starting measurements were 42-38-50. They are now 40-33.5-44.)

One of the reasons that bottom-heavy fat is sticky is that all the estrogen we produce encourages it to be there. That's why you don't see a lot of pear-shaped men. On one hand, that's a good thing because it means that we produce enough estrogen. (I've noticed that every single woman I've ever known who had fertility problems was top-heavy or straight up-and-down rather than pear-shaped or hourglass.) OTOH, it's a big pain to have big hips.

I recommend the book Escape Your Shape by Edward Jackowski. I think I got mine for $7 or so on Amazon. In it, he describes the four basic body shapes (we are known as spoons; the other shapes are cones, rulers, and hourglasses) and details the exercises required to change those shapes. I haven't started the workout yet, but my little sister has been doing it for three weeks, and she's seeing results already. This book is GREAT, although it goes against the establishment somewhat. (But hey, so does low-carbing, right?) For instance, did you know that spoons should never do lunges, squats, or kick-boxing?

Okay, I sound like an ad. But it really is a great book, simple and to-the-point.

Oh, and I second everything that Milhafre said.