Move in weekend trip recap

We've gone back & forth on letting Nick have his car in Boulder this year, but we agreed to have him wait until second semester. As a result, we needed to arrange flights & a car rental for move in weekend. This is what I consider a "logistics" trip, and definitely not a vacation, so here's how we optimized to keep costs in check. 

A few weeks before the trip, my mom asked if she could join, so that's also reflected here. 

Note that this doesn't include the actual costs of moving Nick in (grocery runs, etc) as that's included in his college budget. 

Flights: $637.18

• One way flights for me + Nick: $279.36. The rest was offset by various travel credits on United. I booked the flights this way so Nick could have access to my checked bag allowance I get with airline status. The United flights were about $10 more per person than Southwest, but the free bags I get make all the difference & more than offset that cost. 
• One way flight home for me - $280
• Flight for my mom from Portland to Denver: This was largely covered by my United miles, but I got her a better seat & the rest is taxes on the miles -  $77.82

Transit: $319.08

• Car rental: $228.04. Pretty steep, but it's move in weekend, so cars are in high demand. I also will be moving a bunch of stuff, so couldn't rent a compact car. I actually got upgraded to an even bigger car, which was incredibly helpful for moving things around, but also quite hard to park!
• Gas: $56.04
• Tolls: $35 (estimate). Not completely sure, as this will get billed through the rental car company.

Lodging: $0

• Staying with a friend one night, so we can hang out & I can also get Nick's stuff out of her garage
• Using a Hyatt free night award for the second night. The location make this easier for the second night, as her house is a drive from Boulder, and the hotel is down town. 

Food: $295.80

• Chipotle on Friday for lunch for myself, my mom, Nick & his friend - $33.05
• BFF provided dinner & appetizers for dinner on Friday & breakfast on Saturday - $0
• Shared an order of fries & a water with my mom on Saturday as "lunch", because we had absolutely zero time to do anything else, bought Nick lunch -  $18.98
• Took Nick, my mom & two of his friends to dinner on Saturday night - $166.97
• Had a coffee & a piece of toast for breakfast (included) at the hotel with my mom - $0
• Planned to have lunch with my mom & Nick before the airport, but ran out of time, so my mom & I got food & a glass of wine at the airport. - $76.80

Total spent = $1252.06

Price aside, I have absolutely zero regrets of flying in & helping Nick set up for his next year of college. We were able to drive him around, get what he needed for his apartment, spend time with his friends, & ensure he was ready for the year. Because we had a car, we also took his friends to various shops with us, and helped them with their move ins as well, and we are so happy we can help them out.

I'm exhausted - lesson learned for next year! Definitely need an extra day, plus also need M!