The small puffy leaves are normal, you will see them there all the way till harvest. It’s best not to trim or do any stressful training during flowering since u want plants to focus only on producing bud, not repairing cuts. Also don’t cut the dying leaves while in flowering, the plant draws nutrients from the dying leaves to produce bud.
Thanks for those helpful tips. I'll let the buds develop on their own, including the funny-looking puffy leaves.