This Chicago couple had a special way of saying “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” as they married while dressed as Woody and Buzz Lightyear.
Not only did Garrett Smith and Jason Bitner enjoy their first dance as the iconic "Toy Story" characters — all of their guests celebrated their big day while dressed as their favorite Disney characters.
“Family and friends must have thought we were crazy to have a costume wedding in the middle of August,” they told InsideEdition.com, “but we were happily surprised that most all of our guests were really into it and dressed for the occasion, even our dog."
Smith and Bitner explained they have always loved costumes and dressing up. Every Halloween, they would throw an elaborate party and take the chance to come up with new cosplay ideas for comic conventions and renaissance fairs.
“We had both been fans of Disney and Disney parks growing up […] but it wasn’t until our first trip together where we went to Disneyland that the love for Disney became more of an obsession,” they said.
The pair has been to Disneyland five or six times, and to Disney World twice together before Smith proposed to Bitner.
While they first thought it would be a little jarring to host a costume party for their wedding, they decided it was their big day and went ahead with the daring plan.
“Our guests could come as any character they wanted to be,” they explained. “To help them out, we set up Pinterest boards and provided links to online stores and local shops."
Smith said he had always wanted to do their first dance to Randy Newman's "You’ve Got a Friend in Me" from the "Toy Story" soundtrack, and decided he would go as Buzz Lightyear, which made Woody the obvious character for Bitner.
For the wedding, they channeled a more modern "Disneybounding" style – with Smith wearing a white suit jacket with purple accent and button details to channel Buzz and Bitner wearing a red bow tie resembling Woody’s handkerchief.
During the ceremony, they revealed a second outfit — this time, in their full “Toy Story” costumes. In true Disney spirit, their friends and family followed suit.
“My mom immediately wanted to go as Ursula from ‘The Little Mermaid’ so that made my dad King Triton,” Smith said.
Bitner added, "My parents have a pirate-themed boat cruise they go to every October, so it made sense for my dad to wear his awesome Captain Jack Sparrow costume. My mom wanted to dress a little nicer as Tinkerbell."
Other guests in attendance included Stitch, Mary Poppins and even Rapunzel, complete with a 4-foot-long blond wig.
"Our guests got pretty creative," they said. "We were happily surprised."
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