i defeated the bread monster

At all my bridal showers that were thrown for me; I received all the necessities to make bread: a Bosch mixer, a wheat grinder, wheat gluten, yeast, etc etc. For the past two years I have been trying to make bread. Any kind of bread for that matter. I just wanted to make BREAD. I recently successfully made rolls. That was awesome (even though a dog ate half of them). But a nice loaf of warm, homemade bread was still on my mind. That was the real medal of housewifery that I wanted to earn.

Well, after all the deflated, dense, hard loaves of bread I have thrown away;
After all the flour I have wasted;
After all the kneading I did with my hands after the Bosch;
After all the time wasted trying to encourage my dough to raise;
I have done it.
I have defeated the bread monster.

I now feel like a domesticated housewife.
No more store bought bread!!

Here are the tips that helped me finally achieve this:

-Buy good yeast. Freeze it.
-Let the yeast soak (definitely not the word bakers would use...) for a good few minutes in a few tablespoons of lukewarm water (not hot). Make sure it looks frothy.
-Measure your flour on a food scale. 1 cup= 4 1/2 ounces.
-Learn to watch for the right consistency of dough. You don't have to add all the water or all the flour the recipe calls for.
-Let the dough raise in your kitchen, NOT outside. Putting the dough outside in the heat will cause your dough to rise too fast, which will then backfire and deflate once you touch it. This makes all the difference. (Thank you Lorna)

This white bread is soo yummy. Especially made right before dinner and eaten with dinner. It also makes a mean peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Now onto wheat bread.

White bread recipe from: The King Arthur Flour Bakers Companion