Heather, in my humble opinion, I think both of your horse shots are great. I like the softness of them both. Nicely done.
You wanna talk about screwing up? lol Yesterday, I couldn't figure out why my 18-55 wasn't auto focusing. checked for A/M switch.....check......it was on A. Checked aperture setting......check....it was on Aperture Mode. Then it dawned on me...........check the CSM switch (on the front of the D200, lower left of lens). duh!! lol I had left it on M! (Manual) Switched it back to where I usually have it, on C (Constant), and all was well again.
So don't feel too bad. We all screw up once in a while.