Bread making experience

Look out Suzy Homemaker! I, for whatever reason, have always wanted to make homemade bread. I guess I remember my grandma making it when I was younger and I remember the best part was "punching" the bread and watching it deflate. Don't ask me why I think this is amusing but as a kid, this is what I remember.
 So I thought today would be as good as any day to learn how to do so. I am thinking... I should have invested in a bread machine- it kind of takes all the guess work out of bread making. The first batch I did wasn't looking so hot in the begining with the yeast and all, but never having made this before I had no idea what it is supposed to look like so I continued. I kneaded the dough just like I was told to do then, following instructions, I placed it in a warm environment covered it up all nice and neat. And waited... and waited. I was waiting for the time when the dough was "supposed" to double in size and I got to "punch" it... yeah, that never happened. But I proceed thinking at this point maybe this was just a different recipe or something. I dumped the bread out, cut it into sections, put it in the pans and it is supposed to rise again- or so I am told. And here I go again waiting and waiting. I can tell the bread is probably not going to work out as planned and is going to be more like a hockey puck than this light, airy morsel of goodness I had envisioned.
So on to round 2 of breadmaking I go...  This round has success!! YAY!