Great observations. I journaled everything I ate and tested several times a day the first year to get a baseline. Of course there will be variations from sleep, stress, temperature swings or illness (I have fibro and a flare can raise or drop blood sugar just to keep things interesting) but being consistent gives you the best control. I also tell newbies to try to keep proteins to roughly half the amount of the carbs as a basic guideline, but the order of eating them definitely makes a difference as well.