He can state whatever he wants in his papers, doesn’t mean he is going to get it, Hopefully, you responded in a cross complaint requesting sole custody? Is your stbx assigned to a unit, (or will be in the future) which frequently deploys? If so, he is going to have a lot of challenging obstacles in his way. From reading your post, it appears that you have been the primary caretaker of the children. The courts are going to put the interest of the children first and foremost, and the courts focus on stability and continuity. You have been providing this to your children for the last seven years, the nonmilitary spouse is much more likely to provide stability and continuity than a service member who could be deployed at a moment notice. Unless, your husband can prove you are an unfit mother, his chances of sole/joint custody are extremely slim. If he is serving a tour where he stays in one place then I can see the joint custody being a possibility, but what happens when he gets reassigned? Or is he planning on getting out? These are issue that you need to mull over with a good attorney.