All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
A nadhr (vow) is a commitment to an act of devotion that is not obligatory by the Sharī‘ah. Once it is validly made, its fulfillment becomes binding, based on the words of Allah, the Exalted (which mean): "And let them fulfill their vows" [al-Ḥajj/29]. Allah, the Exalted, has praised those who fulfill their vows, saying: "They fulfill [their] vows and fear a Day whose evil will be widespread" [al-Insān/7]. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever vows to obey Allah, let him obey Him; and whoever vows to disobey Him, let him not disobey Him." (Related by al-Bukhārī)
Whoever vows an act of devotion to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, must fulfill that vow to the extent he is able. The vow remains binding upon him (mu‘allaqan fī dhimmatih — a standing obligation upon his religious liability) so long as he remains able to fulfill it. Imam an-Nawawī (raḥimahullāh) said: "If someone vows an act of obedience, one must look [at the circumstances]: if he conditioned it upon attaining some good or averting some harm, and the good was attained or the harm was averted from him, then he is obligated to fulfill the vow." [al-Majmū‘ Sharḥ al-Muhadhdhab, Vol.8/P.458]
Furthermore, whoever utters explicit wording of a vow — as in the case presented in the question — or uses indirect/implicit wording (kināyah) while intending a vow, is obligated to carry out what he uttered. Imam ar-Ramlī ash-Shāfi‘ī (raḥimahullāh) was asked about someone who says: "I have vowed such-and-such to Zayd," without intending thereby a mere acknowledgment [of an existing debt] — is this explicit wording that establishes a binding vow, or merely implicit wording, or does it not establish a vow at all? He answered: "It is explicit in establishing it [the vow]." [Fatāwā ar-Ramlī, Vol.4/P.100]
Accordingly, the questioner is obligated to fulfill what she uttered in both instances, since the wording of the vow was explicit in both cases. Therefore, in the second instance, her claim that she did not intend a vow cannot be accepted, and likewise, the two statements were not spoken in a manner connected enough to be construed as an exception to the first.
Accordingly: it is obligatory to fulfill both vows, since both formulations were explicit in constituting a vow. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.
