Trying to copy Auntie Anne's Pretzels

As you may have guessed, my latest pursuits have been trying to re-create restaurant/fast food items so we can save money by eating in  My recent experiment was Auntie Anne's soft pretzels. After 5+ hours of creating the dough, waiting for it to rise, shaping the dough, boiling then baking the pretzels, I have concluded that perhaps it's worth it to spend that $4/pretzel...plus, it tastes a lot better. While I followed the steps posted online from a take-home Auntie Anne Pretzel kit (except I didn't have the actual kit but started from scratch with flour, yeast, and salt), the time dedicated to this little complicated treat can probably be better spent...