Right - four pairs, duh. I was thinking I needed 8 pairs.

Then, if I have 4 pairs of 8 ohm speakers, how would i set the volume controls (assuming I had 3 controls --- 1 running 2 speakers in kitchen, 1 running 2 speakers in living room, and 1 running 4 speakers outisde)?

Also, I found this snazzy little number that might fit the bill:
http://www.sherwoodusa.com/prod_rx5502.html. It's a 2 zone, 8 channel amp from Sherwood. Tom, your solution would be cheaper, though.