Bread's final rise stops

Hi all,

I'm new to bread-making and am running into difficulty getting with the final rise; it only rises a little and then stops rising. I am making it by hand as I've been unsatisfied with my machine-made bread.

I'm following a basic white bread recipe for one loaf. I am using freshly bought Saf brand yeast (it is billed as being superior to red star and I certainly get more powerful rises with it). The flour is generic all-purpose white flour.

I do proof the yeast and it quite alive! After kneading the dough I let it rise and it doubles in ~1hour. I punch it down and let it rise until it doubles again, ~45min. I transfer it to a loaf pan for the final rise and it begins to rise fairly well. It crests over the loaf pan by about an inch and then comes to a complete stop.

It is as if the yeast is spent or there isn't any more starch-sugar it is able to convert.

A few questions: 1) Is there any reason to use the "bread machine" flour insteaf of all-purpose. 2) Is the 1-inch rise over the edge of the pan good for a 1 lb loaf? 3) After someone in my family moves around the rising loaf pan, causing it fall from that 1-inch rise over the rim, is there any hope in getting it rise back or am I screwed? 4) What happens when the dough rises too long? The rise must saturare at some point. Is this what is happening to the bread? 5) What environment is best for rising the bread. If I put a towel over it, I risk disturbing the loaf when I remove it and risk the loaf falling. 6) What tips am I missing here?

Thanks in advance.

-John