Yes, the pH noted for your TE buffer would mostly likely be for the final pH (that's the pH we use in our lab, but I of course can't say for certain we use the same protocol as your lab). You'll get very close to that if you adjust the pH of the Tris buffer, then add your EDTA. If the EDTA changes the pH appreciably, you may need to start with a different pH for your Tris to compensate for the addition of EDTA. You can correct the pH with HCl or NaOH, but purists would say you're then diluting your solution and weakening the ability of your buffer to do its job (I agree that if you need more than a few drops of either to correct the pH, then the problem is your starting buffer). Sometimes the best bet when in doubt is to call the person who you got the protocol from to clarify.
An aside on lab notebooks:
Absolutely, write everything in your lab notebook, legibly and in sufficient detail that the next person who needs to know what you've done can repeat it without having to guess. The other thing I sometimes have a hard time impressing upon my students is that the notes are supposed to be written WHILE you're doing the experiment, not when you're done for the day and going back trying to recall what you did. The lab notebook should be kept in a way that should you for any reason need to stop mid-way through a procedure (say you got sick and needed to leave and have someone else finish for you), anyone else in the lab should be able to look at your notebook and know exactly where you left off to pick it up for you. Think of it that your notebook isn't so much for your use as for that of the next person in the lab after you who has to use the protocols you've developed.
The other benefit of keeping good notes is just in the type of case you're asking about: you're not sure if you're following a recipe correctly (or even if you think you're certain about it, but still make a mistake), and/or your experiment doesn't work. If you have good notes of what you did, going through those notes with someone more experienced would enable them to help spot any errors in the protocol, or conversely, prove to them that you did everything correctly and the experiment really just isn't going to work that way. Especially when someone is new to a lab, when they do their first experiments and something doesn't work, it's really hard to know if the problem is with the new person's technique or with the experiment itself. Good notes will help your mentor sort through this with you.
