iTunes freezes when ejecting iPhone 5.

Every once in a while when I eject my iPhone from my computer, iTunes seems to freeze up. I get the spinning disc and it will go on for hours if I let it. I usually have to shut the phone off to unfreeze the program. I'm running a MacBook Pro with OS X 10.6.8 and iTunes 11.0.4 (4). The iOS on the phone is 6.1.4

What is the proper way to disconnect when this happens?