Has anyone noticed a change in thier drinking water before and after fills? I can now drink water a half hour before or after a meal is this okay to continue to do???

No need to limit drinking before meals and right up to the beginning fo the meal. After meals, an hour is good. (And a half-hour is better than nothing.)

From my experience, the big thing about drinking after a meal is that it get's the food moving. The rule is to help you stay fuller longer, not because you might damage yourself (although if you just ate you should be careful not to overfill yourself).

You mean all this time I could have drank water before my meals?

Yep...