Disneydad;
If you are doing the majority of your shopping (frig, microwave, power strips, command strips, bedding, school supplies, etc.) in Nashville, then I would recommend doing the large majority of the shopping on Friday. I would also strongly suggest getting your visit to the Vandy bookstore over on Friday–if you need some textbooks, other supplies or Vandy apparel. Note that the Vandy bookstore is probably not the most economical place to buy textbooks.
You will have a move in time assigned for Saturday am. Move in is fast and smooth. It will take a few hours to unpack, make a list of things you need/forgot, and do installs of frig/microwave, printer, TV, etc. Then basically 1600 freshmen and their parents all descend upon the local Target and Wal-Mart in the afternoon–it is insanity. To prevent joining the insanity (worse than day after Thanksgiving)–simply google the other Targets and Walmart in the area–there are many about 20 minutes away and that’s far enough to get to a calmer store that still has merchandise all 1600 students want.
You’ll end up back at the dorm, finalizing/putting away the last things, and then after a dinner on the lawn, you leave your student there for the night to have a dorm meeting, party, etc. Either its goodbye then, or the next morning during the breakfast. Breakfast is juice and a muffin, and for a lot of families, a dose of tears too. It is a “good bye” session that you could easily skip. It simply depends on how comfortable you are in saying goodbye the night before.
Remember to sign your son up for Amazon Student Prime, free overnight shipping, he can order anything and everything from there that you forget. You can order your bedding and supplies from Bed Bath & Beyond, Costco or Sams in your hometown, and they will secure it in Nashville for you to pick up there if you wish to “pre-shop” before you arrive.
You can also ship packages to Vanderbilt about 2 weeks before move in, they will be stacked in a tent on the Commons lawn for you to pick up on Saturday. We shipped some things, and even had someone to take it to her room for her on Saturday.
With good planning, move in can be very painless. Its the saying “goodbye” part that’s a little more challenging.