If you can manage your "heavy luggage", I suggest you do the work and make it easy on the girlfriend.
Make your way upstairs in the terminal and head over to ticketing. Exit outside and wait for her at the "Departures", rather than "Arrivals". (where people and taxis are dropping off passengers).

I do this often. If it's late at night, all the better, easy for her to pull curbside. I have never had a problem, and voila, no parking fees or problems finding your ride.

Terminal 1, go to the far end of the ticketing, past Southwest Air, just before the up escalators to get to C and D gates. Exit doors. You tell her to drive to the furthest end of Terminal 1. Best place to pickup.